8 different docs could possibly deliver baby...

a+dlutovsky · October 2011

I'm a little worried about not having my doctor deliver my baby. There are 8 docs in the group, so whoever's on call will deliver. And I don't get to meet any of them before hand. This just seems weird to me. It's a great hospital and I really like my OB and have had him as my gynecologist for a few years so I don't know if I want to change hospitals. It would just be nice to know who's going to be there for the delivery! Anyone else have this problem?

lylipad · October 2011

It may be strange that i am not really worried about it, but yes I have Kaiser and while I love my OB I think there are way more docs on the rotation... something like 35! The way I look at it is the OB is just going to catch, the nurses/ MW are the ones who will be with me through the process and its not like you know them either. My hospital has a meet the MW class but the next one is on my EDD so I am not taking it.

Remember that for the most part they are just going to be in and out of the room anyhow and you can have "your" people with you.

GL

krissywave · October 2011

I know for me there are only 2 Dr's. My pratice trys to get you to see both of them during the 9 months. So that way you feel better about who is going to be there at the end. Like PP stated, all the hard work part is done by nurses/mw. Dr's only come in, in the end or if nurses note something isnt going right.

December192009 · October 2011

I was in your boat when DS#2 was born on New Years Eve. I wouldn't worry too much about it, PPers were right - doc just comes in to catch the baby. Prob. the most important people in the room for you will be your L&D nurses (they do all the work prior to 10 cm), anesthesiologist (if you decide to have one) and your birthing coach. Just think - you'll probably be in so much discomfort at the time and so excited to see you LO you wouldn't really mind who's there to make the catch

My doc came to DS1's birth in the morning to break my water, checked in at lunch, and then came back at 10:00 that night to make the catch.

Just make sure you have completed your research and made your own decisions about your birthing plan - I was terrified of the older docs in my practice b/c they have a cut everyone no matter what policy. Turns out it didn't matter b/c I had a terrible tear anyway! all that worry over nothing ! Also remember that OB's are OB's for a reason- they all have yours and baby's best interest at hand!

DevonPow · October 2011

I have a similar thing...any of the OBs(4-5) can deliver, it is whoever is on call. I honestly don't care. With DS the OB who delivered him (not my OB since he wasn't on call) was in the room maybe 5-10 minutes at the very end. It is the nurses who are with you the entire time.

KRISTA555 · October 2011

I wouldn't worry about it too much.

I had a doctor that I had never met deliver my DD. I didn't care. I just wanted her out.

The doctor doesn't do that much, surprisingly. The nurses honestly do most of the work during labor, and the doctor comes in at the end and gets all the glory. :P

PhysChic7685 · October 2011

My practice sort of works the same way, except they make sure to cycle you through all the doctors during all your OB appts so you've at least had the opportunity to meet them all once beforehand.

pacsunqtaz · October 2011

That's sort of how the clinic I go to does it. There's four doctors that you meet (like once each) during your pregnancy during regular appointments and any one of them could end up delivering the baby come the due date. I was whining to my mom about it, because it struck me as odd too, and she said not to worry- that the nurses do like 80% of the work and the doctor always comes in last minute... there's no chance I'll know the nurses so I guess it doesn't matter much if the doctor is a stranger.

Unknown · October 2011

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sunnyday016 · October 2011

Our hospital has 4-5 OBs that deliver, one of them is my OB. He ended up delivering DD because he was on duty when she happened to be born, however I'm really not worried about who actually delivers this baby. He came in (literally) as her head was coming out, guided her out, stitched me up, and (literally) ran out of the room because he had to deliver someone else. He was there for maybe 15 minutes total and most of that was stitching me.

cassiehansen · October 2011

Our hospital does this as well. There are 20 midwives in rotation and I'll get whatever one happens to be there. It worried me at first but the further along I get the less I mind. They are all there to do the same thing.

steph2809 · October 2011

I am also in the same situation and I have been worrying a little too. It makes me worry even more because I switched from one of the doctors to the other. The first one was a lady and I had a miscarriage last year and she was kind of rude and not understanding at all. Then when I got pregnant this time I was 12 weeks and she still would not verify that I was even pregnant. And by that point I had a blood test and 2 ultrasounds. She would also make me feel like I was stupid when asking questions. Needless to say I switched doctors and love the new one; he is very nice and really good about listening to and answering my questions. But to think she could deliver my baby makes me crazy.

med380 · October 2011

That is very typical of OB/GYN practices, although at mine you have at least one prenatal appointment with each doc in the clinic so that you do get to meet them all.

My primary OB was not the same one who delivered DS, but it was still a great experience. I am hoping my OB will be able to deliver this baby, but I know that may not happen.

gothgrrl · October 2011

This was a major point of contention for me when I needed to find an OB (as my gyn was no longer practicing obstetrics)...and in the practice I am seeing, I will be rotated around to all the docs - the doc on call with "catch" the baby. I am getting to be okay with that...would rather have a doc who is fresh on the case than someone who has had several nights/days on end of being on call. There happens to be one OB in the practice who is a bit of an a$$...and I really hope the timing of everything will result in my LO being delivered by someone other than him.

And as PP's have noted (and my SIL who is a L & D nurse would strongly agree) - the nurses are the ones who get you through the majority of the birth anyway.

mrs.gee · October 2011

In my new OB practice, no, but when DS was delivered I had never met the doctor who delivered him until she was telling me to push. In fact, she wasn't even in my doctor's practice, she was in an affiliated practice across town (that I never knew existed until I was at the hospital delivering; I just never thought to ask). It's just a risk you take if you go to a practice that operates like that, sorry to say. My new practice only has 4 doctors and no affiliated practices. They have you meet every doctor over the course of your pregnancy and while my doctor should be the one to deliver me, if she's at a conference or out for some reason that particular day, I'll at least have met the others.

Aprilsies · October 2011

The practice I go to has 6 .... I made sure to schedule my regular appointments with each so that I could get a feel for them. The baby is going to come when it comes no matter who is on call so you have to be prepared for anything!

aggiefrau08 · October 2011

If I deliver during the week, my OB will be the one to deliver the baby. On the weekend, it really just depends. I love my OB and I would really like for her to be the one that's there, but I'm ok with that not happening. I just want my son to get here.

Lisa9926 · October 2011

My practice has 4 doctors that rotate;however, they make sure you get in to see them all during your appointments to feel comfortable. I really like everyone in the practice and think they are all good doctors. Can't you make appointments with the different doctors during your pregnancy?

I was induced with my first, so of course I picked my normal doctor. However, I personnally like the rotation deal. I would rather a fresh and alert doctor deliver my baby rather than one that has been awake for 30 hours because all their patients decided to go in labor at the same time.

greengirl0909 · October 2011

I just switched OBs and went from one who delivered babies himself to a group practice. I was feeling very nervous about not knowing who would deliver me. There are 5 doctors in the practice and they rotate who is on duty. I do have the opportunity to meet them all prior to delivery.

At my last appointment I discussed this with my new OB. He was talking about the American Gynecological Society recommendations for baby deliveries. They did a bunch of tests and found that dotors who had been up a certain amount of time functioned the same as someone with an elevated blood alcohol level, and depending on their age and how long they'd been up, some would be considered the same or worse than legally drunk.

The c-section rate dramatically rises between 5 and 6 at night as well as between 9 and 10, and of course a major factor there is "I want to go home!" Keeping those things in mind, I've tried to be more open to the idea of a group practice. My doc really reassured me by saying that he believed this design worked because he was sure he shared the same philosophies with his partners. He said one of the docs in the practice was originally recruited by a different OB in town. She arrived and started working with the doc and found they had different attitudes about delivery, so she approached this other practice about joining them. I know it can be scary and I'm still not 100% sold, but I do feel better about it.

frasey · October 2011

this is one of the reasons I chose to go with a midwife. Theyre free where I live, so it seemed like a no-brainer here. She explained that there's like an 80% chance she'll be there for the birth, and if she's not there it will be a pre-determined second person who I will meet beforehand just in case.

Any way something like this would work for you guys? Maybe getting a doula also would help to put your minds at ease.

repedrick · October 2011

With DD1 I was choosing between 2 different OB offices. #1 had 6 different doctors, you rotated your visits between all the drs so that you met them all and then whoever was on call was who delivered. #2 you chose your dr and that's who you see for all visits and they call him in for delivery. I chose #2 because I liked the idea of the same person the whole time. DD decided to come 3 weeks early and the night I went into labor happened to be the night that my dr took off on a 5 day vacation. So I didn't get my dr for delivery and ended up getting the on call dr anyways. It was just fine- I hardly saw the dr, he came in early and introduced himself and asked if I had any questions, then it was only the nurses until push time.

My original dr and I laughed about it because he knew that I wanted him there and he purposely scheduled his vacation for that week because he didn't have any patients that were due for at least 3 weeks and figured the chances would be slim that someone would go early and he would miss it.

With this LO- I am going back to the same dr as DD. I figured the on call dr for delivery was not as big of deal to me as getting the same dr for my visits.

Sparks in training! · October 2011

Try not to worry about it. All doctors belong to a "group" and they rotate that ER coverage/rounds for each other. If your doctor happen to have lets say a wedding the weekend prior to your due date. Generally their office will inform you and someone will "cover" her patients.

With our 1st baby, its easy to let the little things freak us out. But know that the doctors in "the group" are all peers and know each other socially as well as professionally. You are in good hands i am sure. I think i have 6 other Docs in my case. Im not worried about who actually is there with me. I know I am in capable hands. Hugs!

ghdst1 · October 2011

It is weird that you can't meet any of them. My practice has 6 OBs but each time I have an appointment the doctor rotates. They try to get you to have an appointment with each doctor at least once so that you have met them all. So weird.

Aurora_Borealis · October 2011

Sharing call is pretty standard in group practices. You should be able to schedule some of your prenatal visits with other doctors in the group so you can at least meet some of them beforehand.

My practice has 4 OBs and 9 midwives, with one of each on call at any given time. I've met 4 of the MWs and none of the OBs, but given the overall vibe of the practice I'm really not worried about it.

BOTB2011 · October 2011

I am in a similar situation - there are 7 doctors in the practice I go to.

However my doctor "rotates/partners" with 3 others and I am meeting the others during my next 3 visits. It stinks because we LOVE my doctor so much but the odds of her being on call when I go could be against me.

I would ask your doctor if you can at least meet with other doctors in their practice so you can get a level of comfort with them as well.

melissarob7 · October 2011

I am in a similar situation, only I've deliberately scheduled appointments with a different doctor for the remainder of my appointments so I can at least meet who may be delivering the baby. There are 8 delivering doctors at my ob as well...

denise12 · October 2011

I have the same thing with my doctor. There are about 8 in the group so I get whoever is on call at that time. But, my OB who has also been my doctor for years and will be the babies doctor, has me make my checkups with other doctors every now and then so I can meet them. But with my daughter, it ended up to be a doctor I hadn't met yet and he was wonderful! I wouldn't have had it any other way.

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