Obstetricians deal with human birth, long considered to be the most ancient
medical art. Obstetricians diagnose and monitor pregnancies and tend to the
health of both the fetuses and the expectant mothers. They look for -- and
respond to -- any abnormal conditions during pregnancy and deliver babies.
Then a pediatrician enters the picture.
Many parents create birth plans before the big event, a written agreement
with the delivering obstetrician about what kind of birth they'd like to have.
Some choose a minimal amount of drugs or no painkiller at all. Some want the
company of a husband, friend, sister or midwife. It's an agreement on how
things will go before the hard work really begins.
Most budding obstetricians will want to consider becoming an OB/GYN --
the GYN denoting gynecology. Gynecology is the branch of medicine that treats
female organs -- everything from Pap smears to cervical cancers to routine
checkups to hysterectomies. While many doctors specialize in obstetrics, it's
hard to only focus on delivering babies.
"Virtually all residencies are in OB/GYN," says Dr. Lori Levi.
It's also possible to specialize within the field of OB/GYN. Dr. John Anderson
practices in a small community -- dealing with high-risk obstetrics and complicated
gynecology. Anderson looks after infertility, pelvic pain and excessive bleeding.
He performs little of the primary care that would be common in a larger urban
practice.
OB/GYNs will be in demand as the female side of the baby boom population
hits menopause.
But take into account the burdens of carrying malpractice insurance and
shrinking payments from HMOs and other managed care facilities. Some say the
financial rewards of obstetric medicine -- and other health fields -- are
diminishing.
Dr. Margaret Craig runs her own practice. She worries that we will see
more indifferent physicians and practices.
"I also see fewer programs to help women without insurance provide their
babies a healthy start. Business doesn't see the profit in raising healthy
kids. It's too far in the future."
Nonetheless, Craig advocates that medical students do all they can to hang
on to their idealism. The bottom line is that an OB/GYN's work is to help
women produce healthy babies for our future.
There's no such thing as an average working day for any physician, especially
not for an OB/GYN. According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH), more
than a third of all physicians work at least 60 hours a week. And since they're
sometimes on call, the hours can change daily.
"The hours are horrible. But this is a wonderful profession and I wouldn't
do anything else. The best sound in the whole world is a baby's first cry,"
says Anderson.
Craig became a nurse-midwife first. "I had 500 deliveries before I was
admitted to medical school," she notes. Craig can't recommend strongly enough
the accumulation of life experience for any prospective MD. "Anyone going
into OB should at least have sat with a laboring woman or delivered a litter
of puppies."