OB/GYN vs Midwife vs Fam Practice MD

[lady_jezebel]

Am pregnant, due end of year. I love my family practice physician, but he is not board certified in OB/GYN (though he practices "pediatrics, family, obstetrics"). Additionally, he will not be there to deliver the baby if it's his wife's birthday, some other holiday, or vacation. Also, how able is a fam doc in dealing with pregnancy complications, the unexpected?

I would also love a nurse midwife, but my sister works @ a law firm that specializes in birth injuries. She is adamant that I do NOT get a midwife, since her firm often sues them. I've heard horrible stories. It seems that many midwives do not have adequate training/experience in recognizing potential complications, and consequently docs have been called in too late to prevent injury/death to the baby. Even NURSE (master's prepared) midwives.

My sister believes that the safest way to go is with a board certified OB/GYN. They have the greatest knowledge/experience in this area. However, my fear is that an OB would be more likely to perform an unnecessary C-section for a borderline mod-risk pregnancy, mostly due to the fear of lawsuit. Perhaps a family doc wouldn't be so quick in judgement for a C-section? Especially my doc, who states that one thing he especially dislikes about medicine is that some docs are quick to make recommendations to pt in fear of lawsuit, ie.just to protect themselves. Lastly, I didn't like the clinical, impersonal approach of the OB/GYNs I observed during my OB rotation in school.

OB nurses & RN mothers, please help!

:uhoh21:

[Energizer Bunny]

Great website - CNM2B!!

Thanks! My other kids' sites are more in depth if you go from Bryce's to the others...but I really wanted to share my birth stories without repeating all the gory details here! :chuckle

It takes a lot of time that I don't have right now, but I sure will get them caught up before I start school in the fall because there will NEVER be time then!

[Shotzie]

Your sister says don't go to a midwife because she thinks they have bad outcomes????

She's obviously basing her opinion on the few cases her firm handles. How many midwife births a year do you think get sued? Now consider how many OB births get sued. Even adjusted for the huge number of OBs per CNMs the number is lower for midwives.

The best CNM birth is one that is in a hospital with a NICU attached and an emergency OB on hand. You get the best of a gentle, noninvasive birth with a back-up plan in case of emergency.

My last child was born in a hospital where I was a prominent staff member. It was the worst experience of all my kids. I got the nurse who didn't want to be in the room with me, who couldn't start the IV, who couldn't be bothered to actually CARE for me and who ignored what I was saying...consequently, I had the baby in the bed in the labor room. It was a miserable experience that I still remember with bitterness. I had tried to use a midwife in our hospital but was dissuaded by fellow staff members and I was as mad at myself as I was the nurse.

Make your decisions on the facts and upon your pregnancy and what you want. Not what your sister or anyone else says.

[gypsyatheart]

CNM is definitely the way to go! They offer, really, a personal touch. They teach and listen, really spend the time w/you that the doc just doesn't do. Where I am, the family practice docs transfer all their pt's to the OB service at 32 wks....and they automatically get hooked up w/the Midwives, if low risk. Any high risk pt is followed by an OB-GYN. Either way, my 1st choice would be CNM, if not that then go with an OB-GYN. I agree w/someone else...OB is not the FP docs primary practice, they tend to get skittish about little things, and have seen them miss some fairly significant issues that then had to be addressed and treated more emergently by the OB!

Good luck and Congratulations!