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3rd Trimester
Dr. on call?
I am sort of confused... I have a friend in who just had a baby. reading her blog she posted she hoped she would go in to labor this day this day or this day because thats when her dr was at the office or on call. (and I dont think her dr delivered her baby) and I've also heard other people say they want to go in to labor on certain days cuz then their dr would be the one on call. So my question is, isnt the reason for finding a good OB is so THEY are the one that deliver your baby or just it just depend on the dr? I am going to ask my OB cuz I want to make sure she is the one there. When my sister had her baby her dr was at home sleeping and they called him. How many people are garaunteed their dr will be there or how many people will just get the on call dr?
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Re: Dr. on call?
It's very common that if you are seeing a practice with multiple OBs that your primary doctor may not be the one there to deliver you - it will be whoever is on call at the hospital that day. In the end the OB really only catches the baby - the nurses and hospital staff are the ones with you before, during and after. I personally pick an OB that I am comfortable with providing care throughout my pregnancy instead of who I want to deliver my baby.
In my case, my induction took so long that I rotated through all three OB's on-call shifts before DD was born. I got lucky that I finally delivered about 6 hours before my favorite OB's on call shift ended, but I really wouldn't have cared who was there while I was in the moment.
DD1 Feb 2010
DD2 Sept 2011
Also, my practice shares on call duties with another smaller office. So.... I could end up having a doctor I've never met deliver the baby. As long as the baby is delivered safely, I don't care which doctor it is.
My doctor "tries" to delivery the baby if shes available but that just isnt always the case.
the last doctors appointment i had she said "you will have this baby this weekend because i'll be out of town. It always happens..."
sure enough my water broke on saturday and the on-call doctor had to deliver my son. Theres nothign you can do about it and in the long run it just truly doesnt matter as long as that baby comes out safe and healthy.
Your doctor cant be on call 24/7. even they need a break. and it really isnt a big deal!
This, exactly.
not always true.
My OB will be the one to deliver this baby, no matter when I go into labor. He bought a house 3 minutes from the hospital, and delivers all his patients babies. He does not take patients who are due within so many weeks of his scheduled vacations. it is extremely rare that he misses a delivery (usually only happens if a patients ends up with a preterm delivery during his vacation).
So, you can find a practice that operates that way...but they're very rare these days.
This is how my dr works also. He isn't part of a big practice.
I had an on-call Dr., he was horrible and it was awkward dealing with someone who I had never met before. His style wasn't with mine and we had some tense moments between the Dr. and I and the Dr. and my family.
Obviously this was an isolated incident, but for me my on-call Dr. was an asshoIe.
I will have one of the 3 MWs on my team, and I have had multiples appointments with each. If they had to transfer my care in an emergency to the on-call OB, I could care less who it is as long as they do their job. I wasn't a fan of the Dr. on call in emerg that performed my D&C last year, but I was knocked out, he did his job, and I woke up with no complications.
Also, from what I have heard, most OBs are pnly there to "catch" the baby and much of the time you're in labor you're with the nursing staff, etc. (one of the reasons I love getting to work with my MWs instead). When I was in L&D overnight in April for a glabladder attack, our room was close to the esk so I got to listen to the random resident phoning the OB at 3am and saying, "I told her I am giving her 30 mins to finish pushing it out or I will wake you up again and call you in to section her." Awesome.
DH looked at me like, "Huh, what do you know? Maybe those books and docs aren't completely blowing things out of proportion..."
This is the way mine works too.
I also had to see all 5 doctors. I still might not even get one of them, because I am going to the northern campus and the 5 doctors I met with (including mine), are mainly at the main hospital in the city. I weighed the pros and cons of both hospitals and chose the one in which I will most likely not get my doctor. I couldnt pass up avoiding Atlanta traffic, parking garages and a hospital that delivers about 80 babies a day. Instead Im going to a new/gorgeous campus, 4 miles from my house, no parking fees (for the family), and one that has about 2 or 3 babies a day.
You need to ask your doctor, but I don't even know of any practies in my area where you are guaranteed to get the doctor you have seen for your whole pregnancy. I went to and OB practice with DD#1 where there were like 7 OB's and & CNM's and you got whoever was on call. And by on-call, it meant the one who was going to come and catch the baby. I didn't see anyone from my practice until the end. I was under the care of the resident and attending on call for OB within the hospital.
This time around, I go to a practice where there are only 2 OB doctors, but they still take turns on call. They make sure you see the other doctor at least once during 3rd trimester, just to get acquainted with them.
I agree. I think its rare but this is how my doctor is too. He said he has only ever missed three deliveries. Of course I am prepared to be #4 because he is human, but the odds seem to be in my favor of having my own OB deliver my baby.
Yeah, it is really nice if you go to an office where your doctor will be the one delivering, but in my area it is so rare now. My office has 4(including my doctor) I have to meet that could be on call-they are all really nice..