Obstetrician or midwife?

Hi Gisely,

There are some interesting points between these careers:

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  One of the main differences between a midwife and a doctor is the type of education they receive. An obstetrician is a doctor that specializes in pregnancy and birth. He or she has gone to medical school and is trained to do surgery. Obstetricians don’t attend home births. A small few attend births at birth centers.

  
  


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  A midwife is trained in all things related to pregnancy and birth, but does not go to medical school. Midwives specialize in low and moderate risk pregnancies in healthy women. Midwives only refer women to physicians when there is a problem, and they do not perform C-Sections. Some midwives attend homebirths, and some only work in hospitals.

  
  


• 
  

  Midwives specialize in low and moderate risk pregnancies in healthy women. Midwives only refer women to physicians when there is a problem, and they do not perform C-Sections. Some midwives attend homebirths, and some only work in hospitals.

  
  

Day-to-Day Routine and Responsibilities

Both the midwife and obstetrician have a number of similar responsibilities. Both provide routine check-ups on their pregnant patients. They both order tests that monitor their patients’ (and babies’) health, including ultrasounds and blood screenings.

A midwife’s ability to provide care ends when a patient’s pregnancy becomes complicated. Only an obstetrician can perform pregnancy-related surgery, such as a caesarean section, or handle multiple births. While a midwife can be present, she is not certified to attend to complicated pregnancies.

In addition, midwives and obstetricians view pregnancy and delivery in philosophically different ways. For obstetricians, this experience is a clinical one that is best managed as a medical condition treated at a hospital; midwives generally view pregnancy as a natural state monitored in a minimally intrusive environment, such as a home or birthing center.

• Salary
  The fields of midwifery and obstetrics are poised to grow 25% over the next ten years, meaning that both of these careers will be highly in demand. Salaries, however, are dramatically different. The average midwife earns up to $70,000 per year; the average obstetrician brings home a much higher annual salary of $290,000. These salary differences are due to the high-risk nature of an obstetrician’s work, risks that the midwife is not trained in or certified to take.

http://www.yourchildbirthguide.com/midwife-or-doctor.html
http://www.gapmedics.com/blog/2014/01/13/midwife-versus-obstetrician-differences-and-similarities/

I wish you good luck in your decision!