Doctor that helps deliver baby

Choosing the right health care provider for pregnancy and childbirth: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia

You have many decisions to make when you are expecting a baby. One of the first is to decide what kind of health care provider you want for your pregnancy care and the birth of your baby. You may choose an:

Obstetrician
Family practice doctor
Certified nurse-midwife

Each of these providers is described below. Each has different training, skills, and outlooks on pregnancy and childbirth. Your choice will depend on your health and the type of birth experience you want. The choices available to you may differ depending on your local resources.

Here are some things you need to consider when you decide on the type of provider you want:

Risk factors you may have for problems during pregnancy and childbirth
Where you would like to deliver your baby
Your beliefs and desires about natural childbirth

An obstetrician (OB) is a doctor who has special training in women's health and pregnancy.

OB doctors specialize in both caring for women during pregnancy and labor and delivering their babies.

Some OBs have advanced training in caring for high-risk pregnancies. They are called maternal-fetal medicine specialists, or perinatologists. Women may be advised to see an OB specialist if they:

Had a previous complicated pregnancy
Are expecting twins, triplets, or more
Have a preexisting medical condition
Need to have a cesarean delivery (C-section), or had one in the past

The family physician (FP) is a doctor who has studied family medicine. This doctor can treat many illnesses and conditions, and treats men and women of all ages.

Some family doctors also take care of women who are pregnant.

Many will care for you during your pregnancy and when you deliver your baby.
Others provide prenatal care only and have an OB or midwife care for you during the birth of your baby.

Family medicine doctors may also be trained to take care of your newborn after delivery.

Certified nurse-midwives (CNM) are trained in nursing and midwifery. Most CNMs:

Have a bachelor's degree in nursing
Have a master's degree in midwifery
Are certified by the American College of Nurse-Midwives

Nurse midwives care for women during pregnancy, labor, and delivery.

Women who want to have as natural a childbirth as possible may choose a CNM. Midwives view pregnancy and childbirth as normal processes, and they help women safely deliver without treatments or minimize their use. They are trained to be the primary care person during labor and delivery. Treatments may include:

Pain medicines
Vacuum or forceps to aid the delivery
C-sections

Most nurse midwives work with OBs. If complications or medical conditions develop during pregnancy, the woman will be referred to an OB for a consult or to take over her care.

Prenatal care - health care provider; Pregnancy care - health care provider

American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists website. Joint statement of practice relations between obstetrician-gynecologists and certified nurse-midwives/certified midwives. www.acog.org/clinical-information/policy-and-position-statements/statements-of-policy/2018/joint-statement-of-practice-relations-between-ob-gyns-and-cnms. Updated November 2022. Accessed March 1, 2023.

Gregory KD, Ramos DE, Jauniaux ERM. Preconception and prenatal care. In: Landon MB, Galan HL, Jauniaux ERM, et al, eds. Gabbe's Obstetrics: Normal and Problem Pregnancies. 8th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2021:chap 5.

Williams DE, Pridjian G. Obstetrics. In: Rakel RE, Rakel DP, eds. Textbook of Family Medicine. 9th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2016:chap 20.

Updated by: LaQuita Martinez, MD, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Emory Johns Creek Hospital, Alpharetta, GA. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, MD, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.

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Labor and Delivery: Types of Doctors

Once you find out you’re pregnant, the decision making begins.

You’ll need to choose the doctor who will oversee your pregnancy and eventually deliver your baby. The doctor you choose will have a big role throughout your pregnancy. It’s important that you make an informed decision.

Several types of doctors are medically trained to deliver your baby when the time comes. You can also choose a midwife or doula. All midwives undergo specific training and get licensed, but not all doulas go through a certification process.

In this article, we will focus on board certified doctors. Family practitioners and obstetrician-gynecologists, or OB-GYNs, are some of the most popular medically trained doctors who can deliver your baby.

You should keep certain factors in mind, such as getting the best doctor if you have a high risk of experiencing complications. You want to make sure you have the most highly trained doctor for your specific pregnancy.

Training

Family practitioners are primary care doctors. They care for a broad spectrum of medical conditions, from earaches in children to heart failure in older adults.

Family practitioners usually have 3 years of training beyond medical school. They generally have a broad range of knowledge on a variety of different disciplines of medicine.

Although the training and certification process for most family practitioners is very similar, some choose to emphasize obstetrics and undergo additional training.

In rural areas, there may be no obstetric specialist nearby, or there may be only a few to choose from. It’s common for family practitioners in rural areas to perform most deliveries.

However, some family practitioners do practice and deliver babies in major urban or university centers as well. They can take care of you during and after your pregnancy in addition to delivering your baby.

Specialty

Family practitioners mostly care for people with low-risk pregnancies. They refer people with significant pregnancy concerns to an OB-GYN.

Most family practitioners don’t perform cesarean deliveries. Some family practitioners are experienced in forceps and vacuum deliveries. Others prefer to refer those who need these types of deliveries to specialists.

The experience of family practitioners delivering babies varies widely. Be sure to discuss these issues with your doctor if you’re considering a family practitioner for your obstetric care. Ask questions about your family practitioner’s training and experience in obstetrics.

Also ask about their experience in handling emergencies and performing cesarean deliveries, and whether an OB-GYN is available for backup.

Some people prefer their family practitioner because of the continuity of care. The experience of a doctor who knows your history and has previously treated you can be an advantage.

Potential disadvantages include less training in obstetrics and the possible need to call in another practitioner to help with a complication or emergency.

Though family practitioners are medically trained to deliver babies, it’s only a small part of their training. You may have to see a specialist if certain problems arise.

Training

Most people in the United States choose to have their babies delivered by an OB-GYN. OB-GYNs are doctors who have completed 4 years of training in the field of obstetrics and gynecology.

These doctors are trained to provide a wide range of female reproductive healthcare services, including routine to complicated obstetrics. Their main focus is on pregnancy and female health concerns.

Specialty

Most OB-GYNs undergo rigorous training. They’re required to be board certified to practice in the United States. OB-GYNs can provide specialized care that may not be available from non-obstetric specialists.

These specialist doctors are equipped to deal with the entire range of pregnancies, from uncomplicated, low-risk deliveries to many kinds of high-risk deliveries.

If your doctor determines your pregnancy is high risk, find a board certified OB-GYN to handle your pregnancy.

Training

Maternal-fetal medicine is a subspecialty of obstetrics and gynecology. Maternal-fetal medicine doctors are sometimes called perinatologists.

In addition to completing traditional medical school, maternal-fetal medicine doctors have completed a 4-year standard training program in obstetrics and gynecology.

They also have completed an extra 2 to 3 years of specialized training in dealing with problem or high-risk pregnancies. In the United States, they will be board certified in both specialties.

Specialty

Maternal-fetal medicine specialists offer specialized care for pregnant people and their fetuses. They’re trained to help when pregnancies are not routine. Special cases can include:

twin or multiple births
preeclampsia
chronic health issues
a fetus with abnormal growth

They can start treatment even before your baby is born if they find a problem during your pregnancy.

Because of the extensive training required, the number of maternal-fetal medicine specialists in the United States is limited.

Maternal-fetal medicine specialists are trained to deal with the highest-risk pregnancies.

For the most part, they practice in either academic centers affiliated with medical schools or other large tertiary care facilities. They generally partner with multiple healthcare professionals to consult, co-manage, or directly care for you and your baby before, during, and after pregnancy.

They perform specialized procedures in addition to ultrasound and amniocentesis. They also generally provide consultation to community obstetricians and family practitioners for pregnancies with complex issues. These may include:

serious medical illnesses
prematurity
twin or multiple births

If you don’t have any high-risk factors, you usually don’t need care by these subspecialists.

You can find a doctor in a variety of different ways, but one of the best ways is by word of mouth.

Ask your friends and family members about their experiences when having babies. They will give you their honest opinion. That way, you can get recommendations from people you trust.

Take into account your pregnancy when deciding the type of doctor you should choose. Your family practitioner may do the trick if you don’t have any previous health problems and are experiencing a low-risk pregnancy.

But do consider seeing a specialist, such as an OB-GYN or maternal-fetal medicine specialist, if you have had higher-risk pregnancies before, or you have higher risks now. OB-GYNs are fairly common in most areas, while there are few trained maternal-fetal medicine specialists.

Contact your insurance company to find a doctor in your area. Feel free to question them about anything concerning your health or pregnancy.

Every pregnancy is different. You should feel comfortable with the treatment you will be receiving.

Who are doulas and what do doctors think of them

Doulas are women who support a woman in childbirth for money. Afisha Daily spoke to the three about their work and asked the OB/GYN about their attitude towards the practice.

My work involves support before, during and after childbirth. It is very important to get to know a woman, to like each other, to find a common language. We discuss the desired birth scenario, pain relief methods, and what to do if something goes wrong.

My own birth was uncomfortable. Doctors and midwives responded to requests for water or massage without much enthusiasm. I changed my mind about giving birth with my husband, and my mother is not the person who can encourage me. It was lonely, there was not enough support, a hand that would hold me during fights, human empathy. Remembering this, I thought: how great it would be to support other women during childbirth, in this happy and difficult period of their lives. It turned out that there is such a profession - a doula.

As a rule, during childbirth, a doula gives a massage, encourages a woman. Some doulas create a comfortable and cozy atmosphere for a woman: aromatherapy, music, candles. A doula can give a woman a drink, breathe together during labor, give information about medical interventions in the birth process, and can serve as an intermediary between the medical staff and the woman in labor. "Dola" in Greek means "slave", she does everything that the woman in labor asks for.

Now I am fully occupied with the work of a doula and I can call it my life's work. This is not an easy profession, very resourceful psychologically and physically, but it brings happiness! It is important to love your job and make a woman feel like the main one in the delivery room.

I studied at the Department of Clinical Psychology of Moscow State University. To become a doula, I went to Israel and America to get certified in Birthing from Within

I do not give medical advice, but I can tell women in labor and new mothers where to find information and a specialist. If, for example, we are talking about vaccinations, then I can talk about research, about officially open statistics in the Russian Federation, about lectures by doctors for and against vaccination, and about where to learn about your rights. Usually this information is enough to make a decision. Among the mothers with whom I work, there are those who refuse vaccinations and those who do them.

In a doula environment, there is a high likelihood of professional burnout, the work is associated with intensive communication with people in a situation where the doula often acts as a mediator and facilitator of the interaction between the woman and her maternity team. Plus, absolute uncertainty with the schedule: childbirth begins and ends at unpredictable times, which brings a significant amount of chaos into the life of not only the doula herself, but also her family.

In Russia, there are specific local features associated with the fact that sometimes doctors do not know who a doula is and assume that this is a spiritual midwife or just an uneducated midwife who diagnoses and treats with hand passes. In fact, a professional doula does not make any medical appointments at all. Fortunately, the situation is changing, but so far only in Moscow.

I liked my birth very much. It's a shame for women who remember childbirth as a nightmare: "It's over, and okay." My mother, for example, even after 30 years, talks about it with tears. I decided that if it was in my power to influence the situation and make sure that there were more happy births, then I want to do it.

A woman can see a doula at any stage of her pregnancy, even at the planning stage. She may simply lack knowledge, she may need moral support when her mother is tormented by some fears and doubts and wants to talk about it, and physical support - massage, rebozo, various relaxation techniques.

The doula understands the process of childbirth, knows about all its stages and critical situations, but at the same time she never gives medical advice: this is beyond her competence. A doula can gently convey to the woman in labor the essence of the manipulations that are offered to her and also convey to the doctors the preferences and desires of the woman in labor so that the mother herself does not have to answer questions and enter into an argument.

No one can predict how a woman will behave in childbirth: she may become aggressive and not want to see or hear anyone, including a doula. The main thing is to respond correctly. A doula must be prepared for any unpredictable behavior and remember her main task is to help a woman live her birth as safely as possible.

A male can become a doula. There are male obstetricians, however, few and not yet in Russia. In general, for women, the husband is an excellent doula. When a man and a woman are on the same wavelength, they understand each other without words. I believe that the ideal doula for a woman is her beloved man. Unfortunately, this doesn't always work. A doula is not able to replace a loving man, but, of course, she can provide moral support to a woman, this is part of her duties.

My first specialty is a teacher of chemistry and biology. After the birth of my first child, I was taken to the perinatal sphere. I have Russian diplomas, obstetrics and feldsher, American - nursing. When I had three children, I saw an ad in a British magazine for a doula training course. There was also brief information about this profession. The courses were taught by Michel Auden, an obstetrician and natural childbirth researcher. My noble husband let me go to study, while he himself sat with three children. So I became a doula.

For the process to begin, a whole cocktail of hormones must form in the body. The main component is the hormone oxytocin. Oxytocin is well released in the absence of adrenaline - it is a stress hormone. If the presence of a doula reduces stress for a woman, more oxytocin is released, labor goes better, and additional medical help is needed less often.

Usually a doula helps a mother in the first 2-3 months after the birth of her baby. No doula gives advice, she only provides information on the basis of which a woman makes decisions. A very important factor in the work of a doula is non-judgmental. For me, it is the most difficult to achieve, all the time I want to "do good" and "do good." Postpartum patronage often helps to close the history of relationships with a particular woman and her family. In Rus', there was a ritual of washing hands between a woman and a midwife. They washed their hands, taking turns pouring water on each other from a ladle, wiping their hands with one towel - always a new one, and then asking for forgiveness from each other.

I recently had a long and difficult labor that ended in a caesarean section. At the request of the mother and father of the child, they let me into the operating room. When the incision was made, the doctor took out the baby's head, the mother was asked to tighten her stomach, and the baby's body jerked out thanks to her efforts. This is a recent trend called slow caesarean. Medical opinion is conflicting about this, but for this family, a slow caesarean was a good option.

Doulas also help each other. We have forums and closed groups on social networks where you can always get support. We arrange meetings in Moscow. Some of my colleagues offer supervision to new doulas.

Doulas are often used by women who want to be as close to nature as possible. There is such a trend: people want to return to the natural state in many aspects of life, this also applies to childbirth. Many women, for internal reasons, want to go through childbirth without medical help, but with psychological help. An obstetrician-gynecologist is needed during childbirth only to provide assistance in a situation where something goes wrong.

If a woman comes to childbirth with a doula, then there are usually no stressful and conflict situations. Doctors are only glad that the woman has support, she is more calm and confident. We are all gathering to help a woman give birth.

As for pain relief during childbirth, this question has been raised since time immemorial. For centuries, people have tried to ease this painful process. Currently, epidural anesthesia is the safest, most manageable and common method of labor pain relief. Sometimes anesthesia is necessary as a treatment, for example, with high blood pressure in childbirth, in case of premature birth, pain relief is also necessary in the interests of the fetus.

Personally, I don't see anything wrong with pain relief. All people have a different pain threshold, some may give birth without anesthesia and not remember childbirth as the worst nightmare of their lives, while for others it may be too painful.

tell your friends

Why do I need a midwife...

— I am expecting a baby, this is the first time in my life! I am happy and worried at the same time ... I really want everything to be fine with me and the baby ..!

— This is a happy period! And don’t let this anxiety upset you, you need it to find love and strength inside yourself, which you don’t know anything about
did not know before.

Now everything is changing in your life: your body is changing, your emotions are changing, and even your thoughts – and it seems that something is constantly slipping out of your control, and every day brings many different, sometimes unexpected questions. These - new - sensations are not always clear and pleasant. This is normal, this is how we women react to change – it is inevitable and necessary. There comes a time of growing up, a time of work, creativity and joy - the time of the birth of a child!

In any country in the world, a midwife is a medical professional, a certified specialist who helps a woman during pregnancy and childbirth. Literally, the English midwife means "to be near a woman (mother)", but it is also consonant with wisewoman - "wise woman". Similarly, the origin of the word "midwife" in French - sagefemme - is "a wise knowledgeable woman."

First of all, the woman who understands and feels another woman – and thanks to her intuition, experience and medical knowledge – helps the expectant mother to go through her definitely difficult, but incomparable path to motherhood. A midwife will help a woman to reach her natural potential and give birth to a healthy baby, while having a joyful experience of childbirth. Traditional obstetric care is not technology. This is art, and art is creative.

In our country, it just so happened that a doctor leading a pregnancy, a doctor who managed to get to know the peculiarities of a woman's pregnancy, and a doctor taking delivery, who often gets to know her a few hours before giving birth, are different doctors. The link in this illogical chain can be ... a midwife, a person who understands and feels you well, who has been living with you on the same wavelength for more than a month. But at the same time, a midwife is a professionally trained specialist who is able to provide you with the right medical care, suggest which specialist to contact and who knows how to support. Not to give birth for you, but to take birth. Not lead, but direct. Not to take full responsibility for your pregnancy and childbirth, but to help learn to take this responsibility for yourself and your child - a completely new quality that future parents should also learn.

CTA midwives

In our Center we create a balance between the necessary medical care and a variety of support for pregnancy and childbirth. We do not treat pregnancy, we help you maintain and improve your health. The midwife is your main assistant in this.

CTA midwives :

attending;
give lectures, conduct courses for pregnant women;
give birth;
carry out patronage of mother and child.

Obstetric care

To ensure that our obstetric care is as effective as possible, we recommend that you discuss the following with your midwife before you give birth:

how you feel during pregnancy. At the first meeting with your midwife, be sure to grab all the tests and examinations, an exchange card, a food diary, ask your mother about how her pregnancy and childbirth went. After an examination, the midwife will give you recommendations on nutrition, lifestyle, and the impact of the emotional state on the course of pregnancy. If deviations from the physiological state are found, she can refer to specialists and recommend additional examinations. The midwife does not prescribe or cancel drugs, does not make or cancel existing diagnoses. Its main task is to help a woman approach childbirth in an active and healthy state;
births. Ask the midwife any questions about the physiology of childbirth, about the technique of behavior in each stage of childbirth, about everything that worries you on this topic. If you are going to give birth with this midwife, be sure to tell her about your expectations, the important points that you want to implement during the birth process;
participation of a husband or close relatives in childbirth;
breastfeeding and child health in the first postpartum period.

Childbirth

Tell your midwife as soon as possible if you have your first (or suspect) regular contractions. If you wish to have the early stage of the first stage of labor at home, then - in the absence of medical contraindications - a midwife will come to you and provide supervision and support at home, and then accompany you to the maternity hospital.