Posted on April 13, 2009 - by Marie

How to find the right obstetrician

It cannot be stressed enough - good health care is important during pregnancy. Many newborns experience health complications due to the lack of proper prenatal care by their mothers during pregnancy. The obstetrician is there to care for you, the mother, and your unborn child from day one.

Choosing an obstetrician starts when you plan to get pregnant. It is best to do all of your preliminary work before you get a positive test result. By that time, you should ideally already be under a doctor’s care.

What are you looking for in a doctor?

The first thing you need to do is set up your criteria. What are you looking for in a doctor? Of course bed side manner is important when it comes to being pregnant. Pregnancy can be tough at the best of times and with hormones raging, you want your doctor to be understanding, patient, and sympathetic, but who will also tell you the truth.

Next you’ll need to check out the doctor’s credentials and experience. Are you to be a new mother over forty? You will want to find an obstetrician that has experience with older mothers and the issues they face. Your obstetrician is your first line of support and trouble prevention when it comes to your health concerns and those of the unborn child, so making sure he or she has the experience you need for your particular situation is important.

You may find you already have the perfect obstetrician. Many gynecologists are also obstetricians. If you get along with your gynecologist and trust their judgment and expertise, it’s perfectly fine to stick with the same person through your pregnancy. If your gynecologist does not deliver babies, don’t be afraid to ask her for a referral. There may be someone in the same practice who will meet all of your needs.

Babies come when they are good and ready and not on a nine to five schedule. After hours, your obstetrician may have another doctor from the practice on call.

If this is not okay with you, find a practice that is smaller where your obstetrician is most likely going to do the delivery. It is more of a comfort for a pregnant woman to have the person she has dealt with for nine months to be there for the final delivery.

Another option is to ask family and friends for obstetrician referrals. Call ahead and set up meeting times so that you can meet the doctor and ask any and all questions you might have. These doctors are used to this type of interviewing as health care professionals and more than likely, if they have children of their own, have done the same thing themselves.

When you visit the obstetrician for a consultation, come prepared with a list of questions. If a doctor can answer all of your questions to satisfaction, they are kept in the running. Once you decide which doctor you want to go with, set up an appointment as soon as possible to discuss your plans to get pregnant. An obstetrician that follows you prior to conceiving is even better equipped to help you stay on track once you become pregnant.

Image from flickr.

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Last 5 posts by Marie

• What happens in childbirth classes - April 23rd, 2009
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• Planning a pregnancy - April 8th, 2009
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