Moving across country

[rachelleigh]

Hello, Second Tri! It's my first week here and I'm happy to finally be at this stage! This is baby #2 for me and I'm almost 15 weeks.

We are moving all the way across the country (US) in just a few weeks so I'll be transferring to a new healthcare provider. Has anyone else had to switch care mid-pregnancy? I'm going from fantastic midwifery care in a big city to a tiny regional hospital with only OB's. I'm sad to leave the practice I'm currently seeing but trying to stay optimistic.

I've literally done nothing to begin this transition yet as everything has been so crazy (move was a fairly recent development). Do I just call and schedule an appointment at the new place and get records sent over? Does it take a long time to transfer records? I think I'm going to call my midwife office today to let them know I'm leaving so hopefully they'll be able to steer my in the right direction.

Any advice from ladies that have moved or switched care for whatever reason? Thank you!!

 

[littlelily]

Sorry, no experience to share. Just wanted to say good luck

 

[mrs_sasquatch]

I haven't had to switch, but I would say that you should call and make the appointment, and explain the situation. They will probably have you send over your records at that point.

 

[jlw617]

Even though it wasn't during mid pregnancy, I've moved across country as well, from California to Maryland, with a 4 year old and 1 year old �� took us about a week as we drove lol. Anyhow it's pretty simple, you can sign a release form while you're still there so that when the new office requests your records, they can get them or you can also ask your current doctors office for a copy of all your records. As long as there's openings in the new office you should be able to get in right away hopefully.

 

[IsabellaJayne]

Hey! We follow each other on Instagram from our first babies. Congratulations on your second. Nice to both be here. Hope you're well. Good luck with your move x

 

[rachelleigh]

Hey! We follow each other on Instagram from our first babies. Congratulations on your second. Nice to both be here. Hope you're well. Good luck with your move x

Hi! It's great to see you on here again! Congratulations on your second, too! So exciting. All the best!

 

[Lara310809]

I moved ABROAD, so it's not really the same situation, but here's my advice.

You need to take the responsibility upon yourself, because even if they say they'll do it, they could forget or you could get lost in the system and then you miss out on vital appointments and checks along the way. I moved out here and I went straight to the hospital with my notes to register myself and ask for an appointment with the midwife.

I was 30 weeks pregnant with my eldest. I'd had my 12 and 20 week scans in the UK, and I had all my notes, scan images and evaluations but they insisted on redoing the scans to make sure, for themselves, that everything looked good. They also did ,y bloods all over again - to double check I suppose, because they had my blood results from my 29 week tests right there.

But don't let it hang, in case they forget you. Do everything you can and have all the paperwork available for them to see. In my situation the separate countries didn't communicate with one another about me, so I had to do everything myself. I don't know how it works for state to state - do States operate as a whole when it comes to healthcare, or are they separate? I think to be safe you should just conduct the entire thing assuming they don't talk to one another. Assume YOU hav to tell them EVERYTHING. That's the only way you're going to know it's being taken care of

Good luck with the move!

 

[rachelleigh]

I moved ABROAD, so it's not really the same situation, but here's my advice.

You need to take the responsibility upon yourself, because even if they say they'll do it, they could forget or you could get lost in the system and then you miss out on vital appointments and checks along the way. I moved out here and I went straight to the hospital with my notes to register myself and ask for an appointment with the midwife.

I was 30 weeks pregnant with my eldest. I'd had my 12 and 20 week scans in the UK, and I had all my notes, scan images and evaluations but they insisted on redoing the scans to make sure, for themselves, that everything looked good. They also did ,y bloods all over again - to double check I suppose, because they had my blood results from my 29 week tests right there.

But don't let it hang, in case they forget you. Do everything you can and have all the paperwork available for them to see. In my situation the separate countries didn't communicate with one another about me, so I had to do everything myself. I don't know how it works for state to state - do States operate as a whole when it comes to healthcare, or are they separate? I think to be safe you should just conduct the entire thing assuming they don't talk to one another. Assume YOU hav to tell them EVERYTHING. That's the only way you're going to know it's being taken care of

Good luck with the move!

Thank you so much! That's fantastic advice. My next appointment is on Wednesday and I'll be requesting written copies of all of my records thus far. It's definitely the responsibility of the patient to obtain and provide records when you switch care providers, even within a state (to my knowledge!). You can generally have them faxed or mailed from office to office but I think it's always wise to have hard copies in hand like you did!

What I need to figure out most is who I'm going to be seeing in the new town... I'm having such a hard time finding a doctor and midwives are nonexistent as far as I can tell. Going from a very large city to a town of 2,500 ha! I'm a little nervous.

 

[LilianA]

I moved across the country (US) when i was pregnant with my second too but iwas 34 weeks and I took all my records (physically) to the new OB I found in the new state. thats pretty much it in terms of pregnancy. I also searched on my own for a new pediatrician for my kids

 

[seaweed eater]

I moved at 14 weeks. I had to take the initiative and find people and make appointments, but it was totally fine. Take your records with you if you can so you can give them a hard copy. Getting them transferred can be a pain. In terms of transition of care, most doctors have been through this and understand the circumstance, but you may get an extra u/s or two.

 

[Lucy3]

Interested in reading your post, I'll be moving countries when ill be about 32 weeks 😁. Hope your move goes well and it isn't too much of an adjustment being in a small town!

 

[BunNtheOven]

Im sure where you go will be just fine! Im in Maryland and I see a smaller office that completely wonderful!