How to Choose an OB or Midwife
One of the best predictors of high-quality healthcare is trust between a patient and their provider.
Did you know that most people who give birth in hospitals are considered low risk and 100% are candidates for midwifery care? Yet as of 2022, midwives attended just 10.9% of all births in the US despite the fact that midwifery-attended birth for people at low risk is associated with a 30% lower risk for cesarean birth.
So, what are your options?
Midwife: offers complete women’s care, prenatal, labor, birth and postpartum care for low-risk women. Can often collaborate on higher-risk patients with OB/GYN support and MFM co-care, as needed. Can support in-hospital, birth center and home birth settings, depending on the type of midwife.
Family Physician: complete healthcare for all ages and genders. About 2-5% deliver babies, manage routine care and refer to OB for complications. Typically supports in-hospital births.
OB/GYN: Complete women’s care, prenatal, labor and birth care, expertise in high-risk pregnancy and surgery. Offers support in the hospital setting only.
Maternal Fetal Medicine (MFM): non-routine women’s care, prenatal, labor and birth care for high-risk pregnancy and surgery. Hospital setting only.
How to pick the right provider to care for you and your baby
Begin the search before you get that big fat positive so you have time to be choosy.
Ask questions! We interview wedding planners, babysitters, dog walkers, why not your pregnancy care provider? Click through for a list of questions to ask.
Talk to friends and family about their experience. Listen to whether or not they were planning a similar birth experience as to what you’re planning - this matters greatly.
