How far from OBGYN?

LauraH22

How far away are you from your doctor?My OBGYN of 10+ years is 2 hours away and I want to continue with her, but am worried about the distance. This is my first pregnancy. Approximately 5w3d with first appointment at 8 weeks. 

DiFazette

@LauraH22 - how far is your delivering hospital?

LauraH22

It would also be 2 hours away if I stay with my current OBGYN. 

ashcakes921

Mines like 10 minutes away. I picked it last time because it was close and it was a good experience so I will stick with them unless stuff has changed in 2 years. The hospitals probably 20 or 25 ish minutes away

DiFazette

For DS my OB was about 25 minutes away but the hospital was about an hour (my office was a satellite). We had a rough end of pregnancy and delivery and DS was early and in the NICU for a while - thank god we delivered there or both of us would have been taken there anyway.    That hour long drive became a real issue, especially since I wasn't cleared to drive for a long time because I was high stroke risk.  

Towards the end of your pregancy you're going to be making. 4 hour trip to the doc at least weekly.  That's a long haul with a bladder the size of a pea.  Are you in such a rural area there isn't another option?

LauraH22

@DiFazette I had thought about the annoyance of driving that far and often at the end, but not about the bladder issues. Main concern is about hubby having to deliver baby on the side of the road. Haha. I live in a rural area with what I would assume are less qualified doctors. I am just already very comfortable with my current OBGYN, but am questioning the logistics of it. Thanks for replying. Your distance seems more reasonable. 
@ashcakes921 thanks for replying. Your distance seems more reasonable. I have access to an OBGYN and delivering hospital within 10 minutes. 

ShalomAtHome

My OBGYN's  office is about 30 minutes from me considering the fact that I usually schedule my appointments during morning rush hour so DH can go with me and then go into work late. The hospital I'm delivering in is about 15 minutes away.

I would be concerned about the drive to the hospital. I have an insane love for my OB practice and can see considering a 2 hour drive for the prenatal appointments, but when you're in labor things are unpredictable and it would make me (personally) nervous about getting to the hospital. I've known 1 woman who had to deliver on the side of the road, and another who delivered in the hallway of the hospital because she got there JUST in time, so I may be slightly more paranoid than most.

R0824H

My OB is 25 minutes from my home and the hospital is just around the corner, 2 hours seems like a LONG distance though

princesslockness

My new OB is about 45 min away without traffic. They are located in the hospital. For my last pregnancy I was 1.5 blocks from the hospital and about 5 blocks from my OB. The only reason I am not staying with that practice is that our insurance no longer is accepted at that hospital as of 4/1.

H4aPartyof5

We live about 15-20 minutes from the OB and hospital that I have delivered at in the past.  The OB's office is actually attached to the hospital, so it is very convenient.

I doubt I would choose to go to appointments or a hospital two hours away unless the standard of care in my area was poor or I had a specific reason (examples: Some people in my area choose to cross state lines in order to receive care/deliver at a birth center and/or with a midwife.  Others travel about 2.5 hours to try to increase their chances of a VBAC with a doctor who is more supportive as there are few OBs in our area that seem to support it when push comes to shove).  I would at least give a practice in your area a shot before "committing" to traveling back and forth.

SaraRose83

@LauraH22 I'm also in a super rural area. Our closest hospital and my current OB are a couple blocks away from me, but they only currently have 2 docs in practice there and they are booked like crazy. As in, I can't get my first appt until 10 weeks if I go there, and they know I'm higher risk. They also don't have a good US machine they said, and they just generally seem under-resourced and over-booked. I've also called the nursing line before without a return call within two days.So I'm going to try out this other practice in the nearest city about 45 minutes away. It's literally down a hill, so delivering in December in potential snow scares the crap out of me. I might just "date" the one in the next city until the closer OB can get me in. I actually really like my current close OB, but the practice has a bad rep and from what I've seen, it doesn't give me confidence that they'll take good care of me and the baby. And how often does one even see their actual OB? 

sbarrettphoto

I thought mine was far! We are 30 minutes from my OB/hospital on a good day. During rush hour or any traffic, it can be upwards of 1.5 hour.

LauraH22

@SaraRose83 that is so frustrating! Good luck to you in planning which doctor and where to deliver. My OB is part of group, too. So I would also be risking her not even being on call after driving 2 hours to get there. I'm definitely going to check out the ones closer to me. Just not what I had hoped. Appreciate all the feedback!

LauraH22

@ShalomAtHome doesn't sound paranoid to me at all! The unpredictability is what makes me so concerned!

queenklau

Yes I agree, 2 hrs seems long.

Both the practice and the hospital are on the same street about 25-30 min (20 if speeding) from my home & work. 

FiancB

Yikes, that's a long ways. My family used to live in an extremely isolated area and my mom didn't want to deliver at the hospital she used to work at that was about 45 minutes away, so she chose one in a bigger city that was two hours away- the next nearest option. One of my sisters was a bit premature and was born very shortly after arriving at the hospital, like under 30 minutes. 

I mean I think people rush to the hospital way too soon in general but still that's too far IMO. Plus, later in pregnancy those biweekly and then weekly appointments will be a huge pain. It would also be a pain if you ended up staying a while due to a C-section or something and no one could run home to get you anything, or if your baby had to stay in the NICU for a while. My OBGYN is about a mile away and the hospital I want to deliver at is about 25 minutes, though in a pinch I could go to the hospital that's about 2 miles away as well. 

Is there a particular reason that you are really wanting to stay with this OBGYN other than familiarity?

juliehollz13

Mine is only 20 minutes away BUT it's in Downtown so I'm also worried about what happens if I go into labor on a Saturday night and get stuck in the traffic of the party goers. Guess we'll be calling for a police escort when the time comes. 

Kacie209

I haven't picked out an OB yet. I met with my GP (who used to be an OB) this week and she gave me some names of OBs that other patients of hers have raved about. I want to make the decision next week so I can call for my first appointment.

We have 2 hospitals in my city. One is about a 10-15 minute drive away, and the other is about a 5 minute drive. The recommended OBs are at the one that is 10-15 minutes away, and was suggested based on their facilities (mainly NICU) being a little bit better than the other.

I've been in the one that is closer a lot more, as DH sees a doctor there and my SIL had her youngest there... so I am familiar with the set up. I've been in the one farther away, but not many times. I know the parking is a ramp vs. the other place is just a lot you park and walk into.

They are actually building a new one, opening ion 2017, that is taking place of the one that is 10-15 minutes away (moving a lot of the services to it)... and that is literally a BLOCK away from where I live.I could waddle there in maybe 5-10 minutes, ha.

The few people I have asked about this, they have suggested to go with the closer one. But, I am still on the fence based on the recommended OBs by GP referred me to.

LauraH22

@Fianc good points and thanks for sharing.  Familiarity is very important to me, due to personal issues and her knowledge about my genetic condition.  She is also very qualified and has a wonderful bedside manner.  However, I am going to do some research about the doctors in my area, as well as, talk to her about my concerns at our first appointment!

ShalomAtHome

@LauraH22 I would specifically ask her for a recommendation. She very well may know someone closer to you, and if you trust her that much then maybe she might have an opinion as to someone who might be just as good. 

SmashJam

I am 15 minutes away from my midwives and birth center. I was at one point thinking of moving and would have been 45 minutes - 1 hour away (in the northeast, in winter) and I was worried because my labor was not very long last time and also the idea of contracting in a sitting position and not being able to walk while it was happening for that long made me very, very sad

SaraRose83

 @LauraH22 Thanks! After reading all the responses, staying closer is sounding better. Especially after what @SmashJam said about contractions in a car... I hadn't thought of that and it actually sounds really miserable. I'm still going to this 7wk US coming up at the far doc though, and then if I come back to the one closer, I'll probably just be a more annoyed and skeptical version of my pregnant self at appointments. Oh well. That's what they get. 

PrettyPalomino

I'm only 5 mins from my delivering hospital, and my OB has an office about 20 mins from the hospital where I'll go see her for regular appointments. Hospital parking costs are insane so This is really the best scenario. 

karmba

My OB has an office right next to the hospital, about 45 minutes from my house.  They're both downtown - and only 5-10 minutes from my office, so that's easy for appointments at any time of the day.