OB Nursing or Obstetrician?

melmarie23, MSN, RN · May 23, 2013

What about nurse midwife?

klone, MSN, RN · May 23, 2013

I was just about to suggest the same thing. Get your RN, get a job in OB, do that for a few years, and then go back to school to get your master's (or DNP, depending on what is needed at that time) in nurse midwifery. Best of both worlds!

I work with OBs and there is NO WAY I would want their job.

meanmaryjean, DNP, RN · May 23, 2013

Hmmm....... let's see

OB= 12 years of school/ internship/residency, $100k+ in debt, $30k/year in Liability Insurance, office hours, on-call 3 nights/ week, minimal patient care

RN= 2-4 years of school, minimal debt (if you are willing to go that route), a couple hundred bucks in liability insurance, no office hours, no call, intense patient care

I know what I'd choose if I were you.

queenanneslace, ADN, MSN, APRN, CNM · May 23, 2013

I bet if you'd asked the same question on the student OB/GYN board, you might get a different response.

I know many obstetricians who love their profession. And we need obstetricians just like we need nurses and midwives. It depends on where you want to work on the team, where your talents lie, and the type and amount of schooling you want to pursue.

When I was younger -a teenager - I was mildly interested in medicine and maybe becoming an OB/GYN. Until I learned about midwifery - then I knew what I wanted to do. That just seemed a better fit for me - and more closely aligned with my personal philosophy of health care. See what fits for you. Ask lots of people. See if you can shadow some nurses, some CNMs, and some OB/GYNs. Learn as much as you can about your options and then go for it.

lovege · May 23, 2013

Melmarie23 and klone: thanks! I was actually thinking about getting a masters in nursing/midwifery. And also klone, do you mind going into detail about what is so bad about the ob/gym job?

Marykarney: I see

Queenanneslace: thanks for the info! That's a good idea, I'll see what I can do.

Aristillus · May 31, 2013

So many variables in that, it's something only you can answer. Do you have the stamina, brains and $$$ to spend the next 11-12 years reaching your goal? Are you prepared to put much your life on hold that long to devote yourself to your goal? As for nurse midwifery, well, IMHO that's kind of the worst of both worlds. You're not going to make a whole lot more money than you would make doing L&D nursing but you'll be in school a lot longer, have a lot more responsibility on your shoulders, and still not have the autonomy of a physician. Just me but I wouldn't consider it.

klone, MSN, RN · May 31, 2013

Not having the autonomy of a physician depends wholly on where you work. We have a FSBC in our town that's staffed totally by CNMs. They have plenty of autonomay. I have a friend who is a CNM and does homebirths. She, too, has plenty of autonomy.

Even in the hospital setting, the docs don't have total autonomy. They have to answer to the attending, after all. And they have to adhere to hospital policies.