do you NEED to have a midwife?

[ewoklets]

i've been trying to find a midwife who will birth at my local hospital and it's quite difficult to find someone. then i realised, i have NO idea what a midwife is actually supposed to do or why i even need one.

what DO midwives do?
what are the other options if you don't want a midwife?
is it dangerous for the baby not to have a midwife?
can't i just get regular check ups with my doctor?

i'm finding this pregnancy thing confusing, i don't know what to do a lot of the time lol.

 

[AquaDementia]

I have always had a doctor. Nothing against midwives, but not so sure I would trust one with my prenatal care 100%.

 

[Mervs Mum]

I totally trust the midwives I've dealt with. They are backed up by Dr's and consultants depending on your needs but we have a free at point of need health service so its probably different.

 

[kelly2903]

you can just have doctor or consultant lead pregnancy its up to you. over here we have midwifes for low risk pregnancy and consultants for high risk pregnancy. we see a midwife through the pregnancy and will prob be a different one at the hospital so i suppose its makes no difference. do what you fell comfortable with. good luck in deciding

 

[tinytoes]

you need a midwife or doctor to see you through your pregnancy (checks blood pressure, weight, tells you when to go for scans etc) . It's not about who will be at the birth I dont think.
I dont see a midwife, I see an obstetrician gynocologist. I'm otuside the Uk and this seems to be the norm.

 

[anita665]

Midwives are very highly trained and because all they do is deal with pregnant women and babies, most of them are very experienced. I'd prefer a midwife who I know has delievered many babies than my GP who would not have. Obviously a consultant is going one better than a midwife but like Kelly said, in the UK at least you only get consultant lead care if you've got a high risk pregnancy. I have a midwife but she has reffered me to the consultant when it's been needed.