If you had the option to choose private ob/gyn-led care, why did or didn't you?

[hivizzz]

We are still ttc, but this has been playing on my mind.

I'm not originally from the UK, and in my home country all pregnancies/births are doctor-led. I know that the British system works differently, and that midwives are highly qualified and good at what they do, I'm not knocking that at all.

However, I'd have the option - thanks to my health insurance - to opt for ob/gyn-led care instead. I'm tempted to do this, (a) because I have a great ob/gyn here who I've been seeing for years, and who I like, know, and trust, and (b) because it's admittedly the format I'm more used to and comfortable with, although I know this is an emotional factor rather than an objective one. I've even heard that in the UK, midwives are actually better for low-risk pregnancies/births because they do more of them routinely. And that there are risks to going private if something goes wrong during a birth and you're not at a big hospital (ok, I admit I got that one from This Is Going To Hurt) although I'm unsure if I could somehow combine the two?

I'd be curious to hear how you handled this if you were in a similar situation, how it turned out, and if there's anything you wish you'd done differently?

Thanks in advance.

It never particularly occurred to me to go private. I had an unproblematic pregnancy, saw a midwife handily nearby at my GP surgery, and when things got slightly more concerning towards the end of my pregnancy and I saw an NHS consultant, it was the same woman my friend saw privately — like many people, she divided her time between the NHS and private practice.

@PaintYour fair enough.

I do think a lot of it is just me being used to a different system, and also wanting to stick with a doctor I know and like, but I honestly don't know if it would be overkill. I'm also curious how common (or uncommon) this arrangement is here, and why some women choose to do it when many seem perfectly happy doing what you did.

I'm among the first of my friend group to get married and start ttc, so I don't have a good feel for these things from real life...

If you have an ob-gyn you know and like, is it worth talking to him/her about how it would work? I’m also not from the UK, though I had my only child while living in London.

No direct experience here, but I have many friends who had the option for a private birth go public regardless. Two friends who did have private births both had planned C sections and frankly it was more of a hotel experience rather than a hospital one, it did sound lovely having steak and champagne post birth!

I had amazing midwife’s the entire way through pregnancy and was very uncomplicated so didn’t feel the need for extra medical support. There is a way to combine both options as many of the big London hospitals will have private wings / rooms (eg St Mary’s and UCH) so you have close proximity to NICU / emergency care if needed.

My midwife at my birth had been in the job for 25 yrs and knew exactly what to do / how to support me during birth to minimise tearing. I’ll always remember how confident I was to have her in the room.

@CityKity thank you, that's all really useful to know! Glad to hear you had a good experience.

@PaintYour yes, definitely going to discuss this with him as well.