On a scale from 1-10

[beebe918]

How much do you like your ob/midwife?

At my appt yesterday I found out my midwife who I LOVE quit suddenly. I don't particularly like the other 2 doctors in the practice. My midwife delivers all her patients even if she's not on call that day/night so I knew she would deliver me. She delivered Jack. I can't decide if I should just deal with the other doctors for these last 8 weeks or try to find someone I like. There is a new doctor coming to the practice in June or July so I might like her but it would be too late to have her as my doctor for this pregnancy.

[acorn99]

I would say 7. I usually see a MW for all my appointments, and she is pretty great. The big downside can be the wait time if I schedule any time other than first thing in the morning. She answers all my questions and is really laid back. She does not do deliveries, there are 3-4 OBs in the practice who do them and I will see one of them next visit. I really give no fucks about meeting them all before this LO ones. I figure they are all medical professionals and will help make the best decisions during labor for me no matter how many times I see them. I had never met the doctor who delivered J and she was amazing and I have no complaints. Meeting her ahead of time would not have affected my delivery in any way.

[vk]

I would say a solid 7-8 for my OB. But a 10 for my NP.

Switching practices this late in the game would stress me out too much so I would probably stick with it. Can you ask if your midwife went somewhere else?

[lostinfaith225]

10!!

I love my ob! She was willing to try new things for my hg. I had a tough delivery and she got me thru. She's hard to get into, but worth it!

[beebe918]

May 4, 2016 7:33:10 GMT -5 vk said:

I would say a solid 7-8 for my OB. But a 10 for my NP.

Switching practices this late in the game would stress me out too much so I would probably stick with it. Can you ask if your midwife went somewhere else?

I asked, her nurse said she would let me know as soon as she found out but it seemed more like a sudden walk out then a planned leave and go somewhere else.

I did find her on Facebook, I suppose it would be weird to friend her? I feel like I've lost a friend lol, I've basically been pregnant for the past 2 years and have seen her monthly or more often in that time.

[sarcaztic10]

I would say a 7. I see an all female OB practice and I have met 2 of the OB's and I liked them both. I really have never found an OB/MW that I absolutely love. I do tend to prefer MW's but they aren't as common in my area so I see the OB's.

It would stress me out to change practices so close to delivering unless I really hated the other OB's. If you think that they would really affect your labor experience and make it a bad one then I would probably switch.

[beebe918]

acorn99 I hear you on not caring who delivers, I said I didn't care for my first but my mw was so amazing, looking back I don't think either of the other doctors would have made me feel as comfortable. Now that I've done it once before and know what to expect I think I'll be fine with anyone.

[jewelsofthenile]

I go to a practice of 5 OBs and depending on when you deliver depends who will be there so I see them all over the course of the pregnancy. I like some of them more than others. I would give them over all 7 on a 1 to 10 scale. Some of them are more apt to answer questions than others and more along my med free thinking than others. I probably would not change practices unless I was really uncomfortable with remaining members of the practice especially with 2.5 months to go, I was happy with the ob that delivered my daughter and I would be happy to have her again this time. I would be comfortable with any of them delivering this baby.

[beebe918]

I guess I would say I like the remaining doctors about a 5? One is a man who tells corny jokes which I can handle on a day to day basis but I'm not sure how I would feel about that during delivery. As an example he tells me merry Christmas or happy birthday or some other random holiday at my appointments. He's very nice but o find it hard to pretend I think he's funny.

The other is a woman who has a very thick accent and it's very hard to understand her at times. And I feel like she gave me bad information the only time I saw her my last pregnancy.

[vk]

May 4, 2016 7:56:19 GMT -5 beebe918 said:

May 4, 2016 7:33:10 GMT -5 vk said:

I would say a solid 7-8 for my OB. But a 10 for my NP.

Switching practices this late in the game would stress me out too much so I would probably stick with it. Can you ask if your midwife went somewhere else?

I asked, her nurse said she would let me know as soon as she found out but it seemed more like a sudden walk out then a planned leave and go somewhere else.

I did find her on Facebook, I suppose it would be weird to friend her? I feel like I've lost a friend lol, I've basically been pregnant for the past 2 years and have seen her monthly or more often in that time.

Depending on the relationship you have with her, maybe you could message her and ask if she is still in that line of work. Or if she can even recommend someone if you really want to find someone new. 

[mugster]

4 -- my practice is way too big. I've only seen the same doctor twice? The midwives are awful. Nobody reads my chart. But they are competent?

[housecarder]

9. I love my OB. She has delivered my two kids, my sister's kids, and many of my cousins' kids. She is part of a larger practice and I've always found everyone there pleasant, but they make sure that I see her or her NP each time if possible.

The only downside is they just opened a bigger office and it's always crazy busy. Wait times are still great, just crowded waiting room.

She did push for a c section or induction with DD but I felt like she listened to my concerns about it and allowed me to try an induction first. But I have a lot of medical concerns so she just seems to be cautious.

If you are still confident in the care you are getting then I'd stay, otherwise you still have time to find a new OB, however some will not take new patients this late in the pregnancy.

[cabbagecabbage]

8. I like the OB and the midwives I've met so far. They are more in line with my wishes for this pregnancy that my last practice but I'm new enough that I can't say 10 because I'm not fully comfortable with everyone yet.

[tootsie]

7 or 8, I like him quite a bit. He will be at my delivery if I give birth on M-F between 8-5 or if he happens to be on call. Sooo, not that good I guess. If he suddenly left the practice I would be disappointed, but I don't know if I would follow him elsewhere. Only if he was still in town, took my insurance, etc.

I totally get the attachment to your midwife though. Maybe it would be possible to hire her as a doula?

[acorn99]

May 4, 2016 8:09:49 GMT -5 beebe918 said:

I guess I would say I like the remaining doctors about a 5? One is a man who tells corny jokes which I can handle on a day to day basis but I'm not sure how I would feel about that during delivery. As an example he tells me merry Christmas or happy birthday or some other random holiday at my appointments. He's very nice but o find it hard to pretend I think he's funny.

The other is a woman who has a very thick accent and it's very hard to understand her at times. And I feel like she gave me bad information the only time I saw her my last pregnancy.

Based on this new info, I would not be pleased with my options either. But I would be wary to switch practices at this point unless someone you know has a really good recommendation for a new practice. Or like PP said, try to hunt down the MW you like and ask her where/if she is still practicing. 

[rungirlrun]

Hmm this is a tough one. I'm very pro midwife and do not want to be seen by an OB so I would be so bummed. However, when I think about my L&D experience with my son, while I liked the midwife, it was the nurse who made my experience so wonderful. And I had complications so an OB delivered my son anyway.

If you're confident the other doctors will still listen to your birth wishes and you trust them enough, you could stay just bc that would be easier. However, if there was another midwife practice, I'd probably look into it and see how easy it would be to switch. This is mainly because I love midwives.

Personally, I give my midwives a 7. I like them, but I LOVED my last midwife practice. Unfortunately I moved and midwives aren't common here so I had to settle on the only practice in the area that delivers in a hospital.

Good luck!

[cavewmn]

8. But she did save my life so it would be hard not to like her. lol

I think overall I would be fine with anyone in the practice doing my delivery. I wouldn't change practices this late in pregnancy.

[glaze]

Dang, I'm sorry to hear that I'd be so mad! I'd say 8 for mine, both him and his nurse are great. With that being said I had the on call doctor for both my previous deliveries because it was during the night/weekend and I didn't particularly like either of them. Honestly though it didn't matter because the nurses did most of the work and the dr was just there for pushing, delivery, and stitching and I didn't care at that point. I don't know how your practice works though.

[housecarder]

Maybe hiring a doula would be best. Then you can have someone advocating for you and you don't have to change practices:

[mcktymck]

I'll give mine a 7. My OB is very sweet and always answers any questions I have (even the really odd ones). But I often feel like she doesn't really pay attention to my file and won't know about something that I know was put in my record until I bring it up which bugs me. Also, she knows I want to have an un-medicated labor/delivery and made the comment at one point that she'll sometimes recommend an epidural for "laboring down" to rest before it's time to push which rubbed me the wrong way.

I guess a bonus with going to a big practice is that someone else might deliver baby when the time comes depending on the day. I've got my fingers crossed one of the midwives is on call

[beebe918]

Oh my gosh hiring her as a doula is such a good idea! My coworker just told me she knows her so I don't have to be as weird about reaching out to her.

[tikoberry99]

Sorry you are dealing with this so far along in the pregnancy. I like housecarder suggestion of hiring a doula.

I love my ob. I would def give her a 9. She is the only one in her practice and delivers all her patients babies. She is also really positive and bubbly in a not annoying way and always makes me feel good after my appointments. As long as I schedule the first appointment and don't have to wait I'm a happy patient.

[comicSans]

High on the scale. I go to a midwife practice and see 2 of 4 midwives. They team with an OB practice and were recently merged with them. It's unclear to me, but I think maybe they're being downsized because of the merging, but the 2 midwives I know will definitely still be there and one will be on call when I deliver. I met 3 of the obs last time, post c-section and they seemed nice enough, but I don't have a clear idea of what it would be like to see one of them regularly. I met with a 4th ob this time around to talk rcs and I really liked her and wouldn't have a problem seeing her or delivering with her.

While it seems daunting to switch this late, if you're truly uncomfortable with the OB options, it's probably worth it. It's great that you have a connection to the midwife so definitely reach out to her and see if she's available in some way or if there's someone she could recommend.

[littlesthobo]

I feel like I can't even rate mine since I've seen her twice for a grand total of 15 minutes. But she seems very matter of fact and wrote me a note to have massages covered! I'm not concerned about our lack of relationship because last time the nurses did all the work. The doctor on call whom I'd never met showed up to catch DS and stitch me up. Then I never saw her again.

I like the idea of staying with your current practice and hiring a doula. I wouldn't be switching this late in the game.

[willow]

I'd give mine a 10. I have had a positive relationship with her for like 4 years now. She's awesome and it's been so nice to have such a supportive OB since my situation is unusual and more sensitive. We even hug sometimes, lol.

I also would give my doula a 10 so far. She's been doing this for 14 years so she has tons of experience and I'm so happy she's also teaching me the hypnobirthing method. I feel really confident about her being my advocate and supporter for birth.

[ellebelle]

I like my OB about a 7? She's good at what she does but was pretty bad when we were going through RPL (but I think that was the practice and not her). I honestly wish my RE could continue to be my doctor, he was amazing! To me it doesn't matter if I like her because chances are she won't deliver me. Our hospital uses a laborist model and when I had DD I walked in to the hospital ready to push so I got a MW.

I like the idea of asking her to be your doula or finding a doula.

[Ray]

Eleventy

He is quick, in and out, doesn't hesitate to do whatever you need re: work accommodations etc. He puts patients first.

[harlowjune1984]

With my first, it was a 10. With this one, it is hard to say. I have Kaiser, so you get whatever MW is working (unless you have issues and then you get the OB working his/her shift). I lucked out, and my OB ended up being on shift and delivered DD. This one, I am actually delivering 45min away, but because of all of the tiny appointments, I see another OB that is 10min from my house for all of those appointments and any lab work and stuff I need done. However, she was full the last appointment I needed, so I saw a different OB. I am very nonchalant about switching each time. My appointments in the last two months, I will be switching to my delivering doctor for 100% of my care and delivery (I am having a RCS). If I had to rate them:

Delivering (main) OB: 9
Backup (who I see a majority of the time): 10
OB I use if I cannot get into my backup: 7

[TheTuna15]

He's a solid 10.

Listens to my concerns, has an intense amount of medical knowledge, and he's on 24/7. When he induced me with DD, he got to the hospital with me and 7am on a Saturday and didn't leave until she had her pedi check up Sunday morning. Also, he's very laid back and let me handle my business. I think I would lose my shit if someone yelled for me to push or something during delivery.

[jewelsofthenile]

May 4, 2016 14:41:24 GMT -5 ellebelle said:

I like my OB about a 7? She's good at what she does but was pretty bad when we were going through RPL (but I think that was the practice and not her). I honestly wish my RE could continue to be my doctor, he was amazing! To me it doesn't matter if I like her because chances are she won't deliver me. Our hospital uses a laborist model and when I had DD I walked in to the hospital ready to push so I got a MW.

I like the idea of asking her to be your doula or finding a doula.

Hey labor buddy our labors were very similar last time i walked into the hospital ready to push as well.