Kiah
In a day to day life, would you rather be a obstetrician or Mid-Wife ?
I would like to choose the career path of being a mid-wife or obstetrician because I want to experience then a woman giving child birth. I want this experience because I've watched television channels and I have seen that it's a beautiful thing when babies come into the world. #obstetrician #mid-wife #pregnancy
1 answer
Christina Ha
Christina’s Answer
Hi Kiah,
I think it's great that you're interested in obstetrics and birth! I first became interested when I was a high school student too.
One of the main differences between an OB (obstetrician) and midwife is that an OB does surgeries (like C-sections) and midwives specialize in vaginal birth. You can also look at this website for more info http://www.midwife.org/ - it's the national midwife organization's website.
I'd also encourage you to volunteer at a local hospital or clinic with a labor and delivery floor or obstetrics clinic. There are a lot of practices in NYC that have midwives, especially in Brooklyn, so you should be able to find a spot! Shadowing a midwife or OB for a few weeks will definitely help you see more of what we do.
Midwives also focus more on holistic medicine, meaning that we focus on the mind and body to provide care. I know some OBs who also practice this type of medicine. Also, to become an OB you will need to go to medical school (4 years) and then residency (another 4 years of training). With nurse midwifery, you need to get a RN degree (length of time varies) and finish a master's program in nursing (additional 2 years).
There are several different types of midwives, but 90% of the nurse midwives work in the hospital. That's another difference that you'll probably notice, however, is that some midwives practice home birth (very few OBs do). If you're interested in home birth, I would seek out an opportunity to shadow a midwife who does that as well (Brooklyn has so many!).
Let me know if you have any other questions and best wishes on your journey!