Choosing a Care Provider
Both midwives and OBs are wonderful. I’ve seen both facilitate really incredible birthing experiences, and I’ve seen both… not.
That being said, there are some comparable differences that an amazing friend and client of mine, Ali, has highlighted below.
Just to go over the main points of her article, midwives really have a lot more experience working with vaginal births than OBs do (because that’s all they do) so there should be no fear or worry about them not having enough medical merit or experience -- that claim is totally false and really needs to be squashed. Midwives, in general, give more time. They give more time during appointments, they give more time during labour and they give more time after the baby is born. You’ll meet several midwives over the course of your care, and you pretty much can guarantee that one of those (smiling) faces will be there when you deliver. Also, if things change with your pregnancy and things become high-risk, then your medical care gets transferred to an OB but your midwife is still your care provider; best of both worlds.
The only downside that Ali noted is that midwives don’t send for ultrasounds unless needed, and that can be a bit unnerving or annoying for some families. However, no one can be perfect, right?
Sometimes a family will go and try to get midwifery care and there won’t be any spots left. For a family who was dead set on having a midwife, I always suggest putting yourself on the waitlist because anything could happen.
OBs aren’t bad, they’re just very different. For families who feel comfortable with pregnancy and who don’t need or want hour-long appointments, then OBs are great. OBs are also great for families who aren’t particularly attached to birth being one way or another; their plan is to try to birth vaginally but mostly go-with-the-flow come the big day. These people tend to trust their medical care providers and don’t feel that same pull to need to know the person who will be there the day they deliver their baby. OBs are the no-fuss option for families who aren’t needing or looking for a lot of support during their pregnancies and labours.
I used to be a big believer in bringing questions to ask your care provider and making sure you choose the right one, but now there are so many shared care models (like at Credit Valley, for example) where you go in for an appointment and you could meet anyone from the medical gauntlet. Now, I think the process works kind of by design. First you figure out where you’d like to birth, and then you see who the medical care providers are that work out of there. For example, only one midwife collective has rights at St. Joes but you can meet with one OB throughout your whole pregnancy. If you want to give birth at Credit Valley, there’s one midwife collective who works out from there but you have to live in their catchment and you also have a 50-50 chance of delivering there or at Trillium Queensway. Credit Valley works with that gauntlet system I mentioned, so sometimes decisions are kind of made for you.
If you’re able to interview and would like a list of some questions to ask, I’ve made a little cheat-sheet for you below.
You’ll also find Ali’s write-up below, and as always, I keep stacking each topic with new resources so there might be some other goodies down there too.
Both midwives and OBs are wonderful. I’ve seen both facilitate really incredible birthing experiences, and I’ve seen both… not.
That being said, there are some comparable differences that an amazing friend and client of mine, Ali, has highlighted below.
Just to go over the main points of her article, midwives really have a lot more experience working with vaginal births than OBs do (because that’s all they do) so there should be no fear or worry about them not having enough medical merit or experience -- that claim is totally false and really needs to be squashed. Midwives, in general, give more time. They give more time during appointments, they give more time during labour and they give more time after the baby is born. You’ll meet several midwives over the course of your care, and you pretty much can guarantee that one of those (smiling) faces will be there when you deliver. Also, if things change with your pregnancy and things become high-risk, then your medical care gets transferred to an OB but your midwife is still your care provider; best of both worlds.
The only downside that Ali noted is that midwives don’t send for ultrasounds unless needed, and that can be a bit unnerving or annoying for some families. However, no one can be perfect, right?
Sometimes a family will go and try to get midwifery care and there won’t be any spots left. For a family who was dead set on having a midwife, I always suggest putting yourself on the waitlist because anything could happen.
OBs aren’t bad, they’re just very different. For families who feel comfortable with pregnancy and who don’t need or want hour-long appointments, then OBs are great. OBs are also great for families who aren’t particularly attached to birth being one way or another; their plan is to try to birth vaginally but mostly go-with-the-flow come the big day. These people tend to trust their medical care providers and don’t feel that same pull to need to know the person who will be there the day they deliver their baby. OBs are the no-fuss option for families who aren’t needing or looking for a lot of support during their pregnancies and labours.
I used to be a big believer in bringing questions to ask your care provider and making sure you choose the right one, but now there are so many shared care models (like at Credit Valley, for example) where you go in for an appointment and you could meet anyone from the medical gauntlet. Now, I think the process works kind of by design. First you figure out where you’d like to birth, and then you see who the medical care providers are that work out of there. For example, only one midwife collective has rights at St. Joes but you can meet with one OB throughout your whole pregnancy. If you want to give birth at Credit Valley, there’s one midwife collective who works out from there but you have to live in their catchment and you also have a 50-50 chance of delivering there or at Trillium Queensway. Credit Valley works with that gauntlet system I mentioned, so sometimes decisions are kind of made for you.
If you’re able to interview and would like a list of some questions to ask, I’ve made a little cheat-sheet for you below.
You’ll also find Ali’s write-up below, and as always, I keep stacking each topic with new resources so there might be some other goodies down there too.