Yes, people. I'll be posting more often about pregnancy stuff on my blog since I'm currently expecting our 3rd child and there are a couple of friends in my network who are expecting their first child as well, I thought it'd be good to share my thoughts and experiences in this.
OK, today's topic, FACTORS IN SELECTING YOUR GYNAE...
Ultrasound by Максим Кукушкин
I have previously posted a question on my Facebook page asking my blog followers to share their opinions and experiences. Below are some of the responses received:
- "as long as comfortable with the dr.. not special preferences.." ~ Carmen Ng
- "Male. They dun get too emotional and panicky." ~ Goh Siew Choo
- "I chose a male because he was straight to the point and didn't sugar coat anything. He was also very direct in his answers to all my questions." ~ Tania Heyblom
- "I find that female is more understanding, and was more respectful on my decision for natural birth." ~ Krystal Soong
- "I had a female gynae with the birth of my 2nd baby and she was really rough with the internals and was kinda like "suck it up princess" and then I changed to a male gynae afterwards and I really did notice a big change." ~ Candice Rich
Some people (like me) prefer male gynae while some prefer female while some mentioned as long as they feel comfortable with the gynae, they don't mind the gender of their gynae.
Some shared horror / uncomfortable experiences with gynae from opposite gender.
For me, personally I have gone for 6 gynaes, 2 females, the rest males.
1. Female Chinese gynae: Upon ultrasound on my tummy, said that my baby was too small for his size and suggested I take hormone pills to help baby grow faster. I had side effects whenever I take the hormone pills orally and after a few days, hubby and I decided to consult another gynae for his opinion.
2. Male Indian gynae: Recommended by hubby's colleagues, this gynae was attached to Sime Darby Medical Center but had his own maternity clinic. Told him what happened with previous gynae and the reason why we're seeking another opinion. He did ultrasound vaginally (more accurate compared to scan over tummy) and discovered our baby size is normal as we need to consider my irregular period cycle. He also said that it is not necessary for me to take the hormone pills but if I do continue them, I should take them vaginally because if I take them orally, by the time it passed through my digestive system, there's only about 25% left to be absorbed by baby. He also taught us about stopping our over the counter multivitamins and just continuing our folic acid and Obimin (which has sufficient multivitamins for pregnant mums) We stopped seeing gynae number 1 and continued with this gynae right up until I was in my 7th month pregnancy and I switched to Putrajaya hospital after considering the services, feedback from friends and the affordable charges in the hospital.
3. Male Malay gynae: This is the gynae we see throughout our 1st pregnancy from 7th month until I delivered Benjamin in March 2009. He was gentle, soft spoken, does not rush through our appointments, explained things thoroughly and we were very satisfied with his service and skills.
4. Male Chinese gynae: About a year after giving birth to Benjamin, I found out my gynae number 3 left the hospital to head the O&G department in another state. So when I got pregnant with Alyson, I had to look for another gynae for temporary basis until I could gather more feedback on which gynae I should go for in Putrajaya Hospital. To be honest, I am a very big fan of Putrajaya Hospital so I definitely will want to go back to this hospital. Anyway, our 4th gynae is attached with Sime Darby Medical Center and I see him for 2 months only, each time waiting for 1 hour plus for my turn and paying RM200+ for each visit. I am not very happy with this gynae as he flat out told me to wean off Benjamin when I told him I was still nursing him during my 2nd pregnancy.
5. Male Malay gynae: After researching online and also asking the nurses in Putrajaya Hospital, I decided to go with this doctor and am very happy I chose him. He is similar like my 3rd gynae, gentle, soft spoken, does not rush through our appointments, explained things thoroughly and you feel very comfortable with him. Unfortunately, he did not deliver Alyson as he was still on his leave and his replacement doctor delivered my girl in September 2011. I had a pleasant experience with the female doctor although it was the first (and only) time I meet the doctor.
6. Female Malay gynae: On several ocassions, I had to go for this gynae when my 5th gynae is caught up with his patients (emergency C-section right before my check-ups) and everytime I see this gynae, she hurried through our check-ups, saying everything is normal, anymore questions. I personally do not like being rushed as I need time to digest through and think through what I wanted to ask the gynae but when she does that, it just turned me off.
Now, how to determine which gynae to go for?
- Decide whether you want to go for male or female gynae, do you feel comfortable with which gender more?
- You can also ask around your network of friends, relatives, colleagues and get their recommendations and reasons why they go for the particular gynae.
- You may also need to consider whether the gynae is attached to any hospital (preferably nearby) or has his/her own clinic. I would also consider whether they are pro-breastfeeding and/or pro-natural birth.
- If possible, try to find out how many patients go with the gynae, other things to find out such as whether the gynae conducts episiotomies, experiences with high risk pregnancies, the waiting time (for me, I rather wait if the gynae is good), hospital/clinic conditions etc.
I hope the above covers as much as I can possibly think of for now. Feel free to share your feedback if you have anything else to add!
