Would you give birth in a midwifery led unit?

[Sequoia]

I picked the OB/hospital option.

My OB was with me for the entire pushing stage. He is a wonderfully calm man who provided us with a fantastic level of care throughout our pregnancy.

In saying that, the MW I had was lovely (I met her the day before as I had cTG monitoring), but if I hadn't got to meet her previously to giving birth, I think it would have been luck of the draw.

Is there a way to combine MW/OB care in a hospital setting? I don't believe there is.

[Trillian]

Is there a way to combine MW/OB care in a hospital setting? I don't believe there is.

Yes there is. The hospital where I birthed my four children was only a very small district hospital, having about 120-150 births a year. You are seen by your GP, who is also trained in obstetrics and then when the time comes, you get your choice of Dr attending - just like in a private setting only its in the public system. They are looking at changing the mode of care at that hospital so that it is mainly the midwives that do all the pre-natal care for 1 to ease the workload on already overworked rural GP's, who you would only see to have referrals for testing/scans etc and 2 because in a normal and uncomplicated pg and birth there is really no need for more specialised medical care. But this hospital is really what those in the city would call a birthing centre anyway.