Anyone had a baby in the US

[ChiTownLady]

Just found out I am very slightly pregnant! bit of a shock as have only just moved to Chicago with DS and DH - only been here a month so have not egistered with a doctor - get the impression I need to register not with a GP as such but a more specific OB/Gyn type

Any guidance anyone can give on how its handled over here - apt frequency, schan dates etc would be really useful

No eperience of it but just wanted to post my congratulations. Have you found doctors for your family yet?

DOH, just read your post properly. Do you still want the name of the doctor and Paediatrician we had? I would suggest posting on Northside parents' discussion board for the name of a good obs/gyn and ask what the system is over there.

weve found a paedeatric practic for DS at Northwestern which is very good - NW do a referral service which I will call to get referrals for gyn's taking new patients....

pro with northside parents is that they are predominatly seem to be focussed much further north - as we don't have a car ( and prob won't get one until the winter ( although if things go to plan with this new news we may need to sort this out sooner)lots of the referrals I got for DS were in lincoln park - so a bit of a trek for us -

I've had a baby in the US.

When I discovered I was pg, I registered with an OB/GYN practice - basically made an appointment to see the midwife that they had on staff there. I had loosely registered with a Family Practice when we first arrived (for the kids) but hadn't had any reason to go for myself. Because their maternity care was all OB focussed, I decided to give them a miss.

So, it's perfectly acceptable to make an appointment directly with an OB/GYN practice. The one thing to be aware of is the hospital that they have priviledges at - if you want to deliver at a particular hospital, you are best to choose a primary care practice that has priviledges there.

I found that in Ohio, it was very much like it was in the UK when I had my first in the UK, 10 years earlier. The appointment schedule was once every four weeks until 28 weeks, fortnightly until 36 weeks and weekly thereafter. The offered a scan at around 20 weeks and AFP (!!!) testing at 16 weeks. They also offered GD testing and GBS testing towards the end. I had no problems declining these test, though I am sure they put me down as a weird European.

The big difference was that there was a nurse who did your vitals, and the midwife or OB came into see you after they had these results.

The other thing was that ante-natal care wasn't particularly sociable - at my surgery in the UK, they had AN appts every Tuesday afternoon, and you got to know lots of pregnant mums, plus the parentcraft classes later on. There, you went for your appts at any old time, and were sitting in the waiting room with people going for smears, contraception etc.

The hospital bit for me was good, and I was happy to have my own midwife there who was ready to flout hospital policy. They did treat me as a special case, I think, having come from the UK and having had homebirths there.

I had one!

Our health insurance/services were provided by a HMO - do they still have those? - and ours had its own Health Centre very like a UK one with all the different specialists there. There was a team of 3 or 4 ob/gyns.

Was 24 years ago so can't really advise on scans etc but I will mention that the CS rate at the hospital where DD1 was born was c 75% (it was a neonatal specialist unit though with a helicopter landing thing so lots of emergencies.)

Was in NY btw. Another odd thing at that hosp at that time, am assuming it's changed, was that "rooming-in" (ie having your baby next to your bed) was only allowed in one room of 4 beds, and even then you only had the baby from about 9am-5pm, the rest of the time it was in the nursery.

But the beds were wonderful - electric pushbutton head and foot raisers

My eldest son was born at \link{http://www.weisshospital.com\Weiss Memorial}. If you'd like, I can dig out the name of my ob/gyn and you can give her a call. Let me know if you'd like more info - my email is [email protected] .

First appt date can vary with the practitioner. With my first pg I used a midwife group in Nashville, TN. Big mistake. This time I am going to an OB. She does an initial dating ultrasound at 7 weeks, then first exam and bloodwork at 8 weeks. appts are every 4 weeks after until 28 weeks, 2weeks until 36 weeks and then weekly.

I have been much, much happier with the level of care at the OB clinic.

As far as hospitals go, I hadn't heard of JanH's experience before. In fact, I've never heard of anyone not having a private room. We were offered any level of rooming-in/nursery that we liked. Since I had a c-section, I chose not to room-in in until the second night, found that too exhausting and sent ds to the nursery for the third night. But, he was with us throughout the day the whole time, unless I was napping. Since I was bfing they would bring him to me anytime he needed to nurse.

\link{http://69.18.146.5/sitemaker/websitefiles/northshorewebsi13654/body.cfm?id=378\This was where I went} - they room in now from 9am - 10pm

Congratulations btw

Had a baby here a year ago, my number 4 and a HUGE and unplanned shock!!!. I had been a homebirth girl in the uk - in my state I couldn't get one here. My insurance company however put me on to a midwife led maternity and birthing centre(center). They were fantastic - I never registered with, or saw an obgyn - although the midwives had a consultant they could get if nec. My insurance company payed everything other than 10$copays. It was a team of midwives much like you might have assiciated with a gp practice in the uk. The centre was a victorian house and had four bedrooms - that were supposed to be like master bedrooms - all very lowtech. I was really scared when i got pregnant about all the intervention stories and rules at our local hosptital - but all worked out just fine for me - if you are a c section/ intervention type person I know people many people here who practically chose their own date for around 38 weeks - I found it quite depressing that no-one else went to 40 weeks! Please ask if you have any other questions, congratulations and goodluck. My little american surprise ( which my pediatrician tells me is called a caboose baby here)is one of the best thinks that ever happened to me - although the idea of a fourth REALLY scared me when I found out she was on the way.

congrats!

i'm american, but had both my babies here to a Scots father, so have no experience of the US system of care besides watching 'A Baby's Story' every now and again.

Thanks everyone for your comments - just been out and got back and caught up. I'm afarid I'm going to go down the intervention route - ended up with an emergency section last time round after a pretty miserable 24 hrs and frankly can't bear the idea of going through that all again so would like a plannned section this time round - so think I might fit right in over here from what it seems...

I have northwestern memorial hosp literally on my doorstep which has larghest ob.gyn in the midwest so I will go there - when is too early to book an appt? - I have only just found out so can only be 4-5 weeks tops ( have a very short cycle)- feel a bit of a fraud to go yet ( do however have lots of nausea feelings again!) I know in UK they did nothing with me when I turned up at 8 weeks until my first midwife appt at a crappy 14 weeks...

You're a woman after my own heart. Had horrendous experience with ds which ended in emergency section. Told the OB I did not want even the first labour pain this time around (30 hours was plenty)

Have scheduled my section already for 38 weeks

If you want lots of intervention, ChiTown, you're in the right place, I daresay.

I would suggest that if you want a choice of how to have your baby you are in the right place.

Choice of how to have my baby was not something that I had in the uk, unfortunately.
ChiTownLady, the good thing is that you really do have choice and can shop around. Depending on the type of insurance you have, you will probably have a list of doctors to choose from. Feel absolutely free to interview more than one ob/gyn and pick one that you feel comfortable with. No one will send you packing because your aren't pregnant enough, and if they do, then it's probably not the doctor for you. The schedule is fairly similar to what you would have in the uk, but most of the care will be at the ob/gyn office. And unlike the uk, it will certainly all be handled by your ob/gyn who you will have a personal relationship with. I never met the consultant in charge of my first pregancy in the uk and only met my consultant in charge of my second pregnancy in the uk once...he made me cry and I refused to go back to him. Really, really, don't feel shy about interviewing doctors and asking everyone you know for recommendations.

Highly recommend that if you go for the elective cs (would be my choice too, if I had mine to do over again), that you wait until at least 39 weeks. Lots of research indicates that the difference between 38 and 39 weeks can have long term effects on your child.
Congrats, by the way.

Choice in the US? Seriously?

errr, yes, why do you ask?

Absolutely. I have several friends and relatives that have had home births.

A choice between being induced at 38 weeks vs 39, perhaps?

Homebirth isn't a legal choice across the whole USA, SofiaAmes.

Very possible. Our laws vary quite significantly from one State to another, reflecting the culture and needs of the State. It's a bit like the EU. (or should I say the EU is a bit like the United States). It works well for us.

In the UK you pretend to give choice, but actually your medical care
is completely dependent on a post code lottery. And in my case I was living in the wrong post code and got absolutely abysmal treatement and absolutely no choice. And I find it quite irritating to be constantly told how wonderful the NHS is and how much choice one gets. I lived in a poor black neighborhood and therefore got no choice and highly substandard care.

Not sure where you're getting your information, scienceteacher, but there is a wide range of choices here. I have never heard of anyone being induced before 40 who was not having some sort of issue. It certainly was not done at the clinic where I was seen for ds nor at my current OB's office. Home birth is definitely done in my area (Tennessee). The doula I used for ds was also a lay midwife full-time doing only homebirths. As anywhere, the size of your city/town will have something to do with quite how many choices you do have, but I think you have a somewhat skewed picture of things. Don't take the Baby Stories shows as the full story.

Baby's Story always gets my goat. It's ALWAYS the same. Woman has about 10 internal exams, gets an epidural and either gives birth flat on her back w/her legs in stirrups or has a c-section.

There's almost no variation.