Guess who is full term?! Booyah! We made it. I was supposed to have this visit at 36 weeks but they didn't have any appointments available for birth center patients the week before. What happens is, this doctor schedules 2 days a week where he sees birth center patients. On Tuesdays, all the birth center patients get their 20 week ultrasounds and on Wednesdays, the birth center patients come in for their 36 week (in my case 37 week) clearance. You don't actually get to meet the doctor until the last appointment though. I only had dealings with his ultrasound tech.
Here is where I would like to point out some of the biggest differences I saw between the birth center and the doctor's office. At the birth center, we essentially do everything by ourselves. I weigh myself and test my own urine for protein and sugar at every visit, and I did my own Group B Strep test. At the doctor's office there was someone to escort me to the bathroom with a cup with my last name on it. She instructed me to pee in it and give it back to her through the little passage door in the bathroom. I thought to myself, "I wonder what they are testing me for." It was for protein and sugar, and it came back negative. I was then escorted over to the scale where I was weighed. The whole time I was thinking to myself... man, he sure could eliminate her position and save some money if he did things the way the birth center does. It's a harsh thought but I'm just sayin. After that was over, I was walked into a room where I sat and waited. The upside is that I was thoroughly enjoying the music playing on the intercom system but no one likes to wait. So, another nurse came in and asked me some questions about how the pregnancy was going and she looked for the heartbeat with the Doppler. She failed, but once I showed her where it should be, she found it. After she was done she said, "Ok, the doctor will be in to see you in a second." She flipped a switch on the wall and I waited...and waited... and waited. I heard a knock on the door and another nurse stepped in. This one had an iPad and was asking me family history medical questions. After I answered them she left and told me that the doctor would be coming right up. I waited and waited and he finally showed up. Generally speaking he is a really nice man that has a good repertoire with the midwives that own the birth center. He told me that I would only need to see him in case of an emergency to which I replied, "I hope I don't get to see you again." He then said, "I don't take that personally."
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