Doctors vs Midwives

So you’re pregnant and now you have to choose where to get your prenatal care. Do you choose an doctor or a midwife? I, myself, have gone to midwives for most of my adult life. This isn’t because I don’t like doctors. I actually love most of the doctors I’ve worked with and think they’re awesome and I’m so thankful that we have them. I’m just more comfortable with my midwives and their philosophy for my own care. There’s a lot of misconceptions about what these types of providers can and can’t do. There’s not a whole lot of differences but here is how they compare.

 

An OB/GYN is a medical doctor or a doctor of osteopathic medicine in the specialty of obstetrics and gynecology. Another doctor that can take care of you during pregnancy is your family practice (FP) or primary care doctor! I didn't figure this out until I worked in OB. I had no clue. A CNM or a certified nurse midwife is a registered nurse who has a maters or doctorate degree in midwifery medicine. An OB doctor went to medical school after their undergraduate degree, then did 4 years of residency. A CNM most likely has an undergraduate degree in nursing and then did another 3-4 years for their midwifery program. There are some midwifery programs where they don’t need to be a nurse first. This is called a CPM, certified professional midwife.

 

Stereotypically, women who want more personal care empathy choose a midwife. Midwives are also known for doing more natural births, including water births. In my own experience working at the hospital midwives will be more hands on and do more cares with the mother compared to OB doctors. However, there are many OBs who prefer to be more hands on and stay through the labor process. All providers are different on how they give care. Some are OBs, some are CNMs. Some are hands on, some are hands off. Some like pizza, some like kung pao chicken. This is also why it’s important to find a provider that works well with you and has good chemistry with you.

 

A CNM can do most of what an OB/GYN can do. If a women needs more care during her pregnancy because she’s high risk she may need to be under the care of an OB depending on the policies of the facility and the providers’ experience. Also, an OB can do surgery whereas a CNM can’t.

 

Now, here's the differences between a FP and OB/GYN doctors. Not all family practice doctors do prenatal care. Some choose to make it a part of their practice and others don't I've worked in a hospital where it was quite uncommon for a FP doctor to be there delivering babies and most of the time it felt as if they didn't know what they were doing. This isn't because they aren't good at what they do. They just didn't deliver babies often enough. If I suddenly were asked to go to the ICU or behavioral health, I'd fall flat on my face, but that wouldn't make me a bad nurse.

 

I've also worked in a hospital where seeing a FP would be the norm. Approximately 50% of the providers there would be FP and sometimes I'd forget which one they were because that's how often they were there. One thing I loved about working with them is how well they knew their patients. This is because they are their care provider for everything, from well visits and annual check ups to OB/GYN related matters. However, they are not surgeons, so if their patient is requiring surgery or a c-section they can assist but an OB/GYN doctor will be the one actually performing the surgery.

 

These are a lot of options to consider. So, if you find yourself not knowing where to go, start asking your friends. If your friends have good/bad experiences with someone, this is a good starting point in your search. Either way make sure you have good chemistry with them and feel like they'll support you.