I've been reading a lot lately about to have an OB or not. I am lucky enough to have full private health and i have booked to see an OB in 3 weeks time for first scan, however I read in a forum (American one) they're really for high risk births?
I'm 25 and am healthy, and as far as i know so far am not considered a high risk birth?
It's going to cost over $1000 out of pocket after private health for the OB... is it worth it? As my first child, i really just need reassurance and a 'motherly' type approach i think, so what are your thoughts - should we get an OB or not?
IMO, you don't need an Ob if you have a low risk pregnancy.
ETA: (lost the remainder of my post earlier)
I had both my girls in a public hospital. There were always private ob's who were rostered on. If there were any complications, then they would step in. The midwives know exactly what they are doing, afterall it's their job.
Last edited by Visitor7; August 28th, 2008 at 08:43 PM.
i am going through a midwife program through my public hospital. They are lovely and have delivered so many babies and there are always doctors on hand if anything goes wrong. It is your personal choice but if u do choose to go to an OB make sure you have a really good relationship with him/her.
Also dont always trust what you read on the internet. The best thing to do is to explore the options yourself as there is alot of scary info out on the internet that is not always true. Good luck with your first child.
Hun, there is no right answer to this. It is a very personal thing. If you have a read through some of the threads in the labour and birth forum on BB, you will probably get a lot of good information. Some people prefer obs in case something goes wrong. However my experience, and that of many others, is that you are far likely to have medical interventions which cause problems when you have an ob. So there are pros and cons to both scenarios.
Whatever you decide, I highly recommend that you read up a lot on labour and birth. The first book I would recommend is New Active Birth by Janet Balaskas. There are lots of other great ones listed here too. Educating yourself is the best choice you can make for a safe and fulfilling birth.
ETA - Check this thread out. There's some good experiences re ob vs mw.
Last edited by MantaRay; August 28th, 2008 at 09:18 PM.
Hey mustang, cool nick name by the way, just thought I'd share an Obs point of view - I'm 28, considered low risk as well and had just held my sister's hand (literally) through the birth of my niece, at a public hospital.
My sister was extremely lucky and had a great public hospital experience. So much so that DH said to me "Maybe we should just go public too!" even tho we have the cover. But I said I wanted the extra reassurance of an Obs in case something happened.
Sure enough we're now in a horrible situation where something might be wrong with our baby and our Obs has been amazing through the whole thing. Made sure I had the best sonographer, has been incredibly supportive and has just been a real blessing. Would we have gotten that going public? I don't know. But all I can say is that I am glad we didn't have to find out.
As Manta says - you need to make the decision that is best for you. I reckon a lot of it depends on the public hospitals around where you live - see if you can go for a visit, or talk to someone who has had a baby recently there. That's the best indication I think!
If you don't have an OB you will be allocated one if you end up with complications during the birth anyway. I had an OB just for my appointments which only put me out of pocket around $15 per appointment and then took pot luck with the doctor who was on duty at the public hossy. He was fantastic and saved the day just when I needed him to.
I didnt have an ob for either of my babies. I found the public hospital great & my local gp was also fantastic.
I did have some complication towards the end of my pg with Mya-Rose.....due to PE. I found all the Drs & nurses at the hospital wonderful when dealing with me when i was admitted to hospital early.
As the other ladies said tho, its totally personal choice. I didnt have private health cover, so it never really occured to me to even get an ob. If had had cover then maybe i would of got one.
Definatly read up on it all & go to ur appointment to see if its for u
I opt for midwife care, or shared GP/midwife care. I don't care for OBs mostly because I find them too happy to get all interventionist. (That's just from my own experience.)
Hi mustang, have you read this article? https://www.bellybelly.com.au/pregna...rivate-or-home I found it helpful when making my decision. I'm going to FMC, and hope to get into the Birth Centre there. W&CH have a Birth Centre too. Worth looking into
I am seeing a GP with Obs training for my current pregnancy, and did so for my previous pregnancy. He won't be at the birth (unless rostered on at the hospy that day), because my public hospital just has midwives with the mothers unless a doc is needed.
My doula said something wise to me the other day...midwives specialise in natural birth, obstetricians specialise in intervention. Very true indeed.
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Ob or no Ob?
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