Focus on one office near you. Drive over, walk in, and ask to schedule. |
Btw, I’ve noticed doctor offices not answering the phone is a new thing. A couple specialists I’ve tried lately, only accept voicemail. |
Wow. You're a peach! I've known I was pregnant for a week now and made phone calls the first day because I was very excited as this is my first pregnancy. I think that's pretty normal. What isn't normal, at least I didn't think it was, was to get no call backs in a week. I was planning to have this child but am also doing this for the first time so don't know everything. I don't have an informed opinion about the hospitals in the DMV but I do know there are differences between them. Isn't WHC a teaching hospital? Is that good or bad or have any impact for me (I have no idea). I know each OB is affiliated with a specific hospital, so picking one (an OB or a preferred hospital) seems to limit your options for the other. It feels like a lot of big decisions early on, but hearing from other posters that there is still flexibility and that I can change has been helpful. |
You've got this, op. On a side note, your patience and persistence will serve you well as a parent. |
Hi OP! Congratulations!!! This was me not too long ago! I called my normal OBs office (Georgetown) and they were able to get me an appointment BUT I ended up messaging my preferred OB and got in sooner. I know how you feel, it’s so overwhelming at the beginning. Since you don’t have an OB I’d decide what hospital makes the most sense for you to deliver at based on location and what you want. I’m sticking with Gtown BC they have a NICU on site which is important to me. I would also consider asking you PCP or any other women you know in the area if they have any insight. You got this, you’ll get in at the right place soon! |
When I got pregnant, I had no idea how things worked with OBs and hospitals. I just called my GP and she gave me a referral. I had an appt a few weeks later. I liked the doctor but if I hadn't, I could have gotten a referral somewhere else. |
I’m in a similar boat, 9 weeks along and still haven’t been seen but around 7 weeks I got in touch with community of hope and they scheduled me for a virtual pregnancy confirmation appt with a midwife (??) for 3/6. After that appt they said it’ll be easier to book. I did also call Bloom (I am waitlisted and waiting to hear back) and capital women’s care (only Dr Saffaran was available and I prefer female OBs). I’d suggest trying to call the office in the afternoon between 1-3, that’s when I’ve had the best luck. This is my third baby so I’m more calm but try not to stress, you’ll get in somewhere! |
You don't have a OBGyn? How? |
Odd Saffaran doesn't do OB anymore. |
Hi OP. When I was choosing my OB, the most important thing to me was delivering in a hospital that had a trauma 1 center and a level 3 or 4 NICU. I just wanted to be somewhere that was the most prepared for all scenarios. That may not be important to you, but look into it and see if it is, because that narrows the choices. Then I just called all of the OB practices that practiced at that hospital, and at each only a couple providers were accepting new patients.
I also didnt want a male OB so that narrowed it down more. And lastly, ectopic pregnancies can be life threatening. If they go undiscovered and rupture, you can lose a fallopian tube and need emergency surgery. For this reason, it was very important to me to be seen for an ultrasound by 6 weeks, which is the window within ectopics can be treated with methotrexate instead of surgery. I don’t like the gaslighting women get that the risk of ectopic is so small that we shouldn’t ask top vs seen before 12 weeks (when in reality this is a cost cutting measure not based in women’s best interest). So I ruled out practices that refused to see me before 8 weeks. |
It’s a little easier to get a response when you lined up your OB first before getting pregnant and have a preconception visit. But you are where you are. You need to decide what matters to you most. For most women it’s having a great hospital, and having an OB versus a midwife. We are lucky to have some great hospitals in DC to choose from, but each have benefits and drawbacks. Personally, I hated GW - it was a busy, crazy, urban teaching hospital and they were understaffed and I hated having the troop of residents coming into my room during my labor. So for my second I chose Sibley, which was not a teaching hospital, which I loved. The care there was excellent and the hospital is quiet and the nursing staff were great. The only downside of Sibley is it doesn’t have the highest level NICU but I was high risk and they handled me and my baby’s
Complications easily and I felt confident that they could handle basically everything except a majorly premature birth (their neonatologists also work at Georgetown which had the highest level NICU). WHC is another massive, urban, teaching hospital. Georgetown is also a teaching hospital but it’s Catholic. So is a Holy Cross. So you have the Catholic crap to deal with, eg they won’t tie your tubes after a C section for instance. If you want a midwife, WHC and GW have groups. Another consideration is practice size. Do you want a solo provider, small group (there’s not a lot of these), large group, or hospital group. I’ve done all three. WHC, Georgetown, and GW MFA are all massive group practices affiliated with the hospitals. They can be difficult to schedule with and you will often feel like a number because of their size. If you want to feel like you have a doctor who cares and is following you, they are generally not the best practices for that. If you want to deliver at Sibley you’ll need to find a group that delivers there like CWC, Bloom, etc. Personally, I loved DeSouza for my second because his office called me back, I got appointments easily and always with him, and his office handled all my tests and issues easily, and he called me back when I had issues or bad test results. You also need to think about who you want to deliver your baby. At large groups, you get who is on call. Smaller groups same issue. Solo providers you will most likely get them But not always. Also, talk to moms and friends, they can make recs too. Good luck. |
CWC on L street is great! |