Midwives and OB-GYNs strive to give you the best experience You probably have a vision or plan for how you want your prenatal care, and labor and delivery to go. OB-GYNs and midwives have different credentials and educational backgrounds While OB-GYNs and midwives are part of the same specialty area, the training, education requirements and credentials they hold are different.
Board-eligible vs. There are three levels of midwifery credentials : Certified professional midwife CPM — Certified professional midwives are specialists who have demonstrated their knowledge and skills in providing midwifery services, and been certified by the North American Registry of Midwives.
Certified midwife CM — Certified midwives are non-nurses who have earned a post-graduate degree in midwifery, and have also been certified by the American Midwifery Certification Board.
They have also received their American Midwifery Certification Board certification. Here are a few examples: High-risk vs. Midwives, on the other hand, can manage low-risk pregnancies and births. Water births — While water births or tub births are becoming increasingly common in hospital settings where OB-GYNs are the primary care provider, they are very common within the midwifery specialty.
So, if you are leaning toward a midwife, chances are high that water births are among their top specialties. OB-GYNs have the surgical training to perform scheduled, unplanned and emergency C-sections , which is one of the reasons they can handle high-risk or complicated pregnancies. Midwives sometimes deliver babies outside a hospital setting OB-GYNs almost always deliver babies inside a hospital-based birth center.
But midwives can deliver babies in a few different ways: Home births — When women with low-risk pregnancies plan home births, midwives are the professionals who support the labor and delivery process. While some freestanding birth centers may have OB-GYNs on their care team, midwives are usually the main care providers. Hospital-based birth center — Midwives — like our certified nurse-midwives — can also be part of a larger care team at a hospital.
A hospital setting is the safest place for giving birth. There, midwives can offer more pain management options and connect you with other specialized care if need be. All our midwives deliver at hospital-based birth centers. So, what is a doula? What about family doctors? Can they provide pregnancy care? Is your pregnancy considered high risk? Where do you want to deliver your baby? How do you want to deliver your baby? How do you want to manage pain during labor and delivery?
What kind of team do they work with? Depending on the appointment type, you may not see your OB-GYN or midwife for every prenatal appointment. Every clinic is different but OB-GYNs and midwives usually share hospital on-call duties with a group of others in their field. What kind of ongoing care do you want? What kind of coverage does your insurance plan offer? If you've just found out you're pregnant, congratulations! When you find out you're pregnant and you'd like to have a midwife provide your care, you don't need to see a doctor for a referral.
You can directly call a midwifery clinic in your area. There is no charge to have a midwife, as the costs of care are covered by the provincial health-care system. The number of midwives has been growing steadily over the years, so there are now many communities where you don't need to get on a waiting list to have a midwife. However, it is still wise to call local clinics as soon as you get pregnant. There are still some communities where the demand for midwifery is so high that it's tough to get in.
Your first antenatal care appointment is an important one. During your visit, your GP or midwife will confirm your pregnancy, assess your health and give you some information that you will need in the months ahead.
You will also be able to discuss who you choose to provide your ongoing pregnancy care. Your first appointment may be with a midwife, your GP or at a clinic or hospital — you can choose. During the visit, your doctor or midwife will take a detailed medical history and family history as part of assessing your overall health. They will also want to know if you have any current health problems and if you are allergic to any medicines.
Your doctor or midwife will ask you if you smoke , drink alcohol or take recreational drugs. They will also ask if you are stressed, have any signs of depression or anxiety and about the support you could receive from people at home and at work. Finding out about the health of your family is also important because it could affect you or your baby.
This includes any family history of twins , genetic disorders, or chronic illnesses such as diabetes. You may wish to do screening tests for being a carrier of other genetic conditions. Discuss this with your doctor or midwife. Your doctor or midwife will check your blood pressure, weight and height. You will also be offered a blood test to check your blood group and whether you have anaemia , any infectious diseases or sexually transmitted infections STIs , as well as checking whether you have rubella immunity.
Find out more here about the check-ups, tests and scans you will have during your antenatal visits. Your doctor or midwife will calculate how many weeks you have been pregnant and the due date of your baby. This is an ultrasound that will help determine which week of pregnancy you are in.
They will also offer a test to see if your baby is at high risk of having Down syndrome or other abnormalities. Other tests may be suggested such as an amniocentesis , or chorionic villus sampling CVS if you are over 35 years old or have a higher than normal risk of problems. During this first appointment, your GP or midwife will give you information and discuss which model of care you would like to have for your antenatal appointments and the birth.
You'll be able to discuss:. Your midwife or GP will give you information during this appointment to help you keep healthy and ensure you have good support and care. Occasionally, a pregnancy starts off normally but develops a problem later so the relevant information may not be available during this first visit.
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