https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Fri, 17 Apr 2026 17:56:42 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/where-should-i-make-an-appointment#post-2613552 Tue, 30 Aug 2016 15:55:23 +0000 Clementine12 2613552@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Y'all are a wealth of information and gave me way more to think about!</p> <p>@catlady: This is great advice - I'm perusing which providers are covered my insurance and looking up reviews based on that.</p> <p>@GoGoSnoGirl: This is my thinking, too - I can work half a day or the full day from home, and work my hours around any appointments I have - This shouldn't be a problem with my job (Plus my EDD puts me in a sweet spot, tax season wise!) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/where-should-i-make-an-appointment#post-2613544 Tue, 30 Aug 2016 15:38:42 +0000 Truth Bombs 2613544@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@dc yoga bee: I work in the city and live in the burbs and delivered in the city. I'm in a smaller city though. My SIL works in Manhattan and lives in Jersey. She elected to deliver in Manhattan. Neither of us had any regrets about choosing an OB/Hospital in the city. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/where-should-i-make-an-appointment#post-2613537 Tue, 30 Aug 2016 15:25:13 +0000 dc yoga bee 2613537@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@GoGoSnoGirl: I just wrote a reply with the same issue! That's smart, work from home those days, or half days. </p> <p>Also, I picked a midwife group that had Saturday appointments. Most of my appointments were on Saturdays or my off days last time. I think I'd try to find a place with weekend appointment hours again </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/where-should-i-make-an-appointment#post-2613536 Tue, 30 Aug 2016 15:24:28 +0000 dc yoga bee 2613536@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Truth Bombs: I will be in this boat next time. I work downtown DC, but I love in the burbs, which can take 1-1.5hrs to get home. But, the offices in DC don't have privileges at hospitals in the burbs where I live, and would most likely deliver. Where would you pick in that instance? I definitely wouldn't want to be trying to come into DC to deliver while in labor, or if I had to be induced for pre-eclampsia again! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/where-should-i-make-an-appointment#post-2613533 Tue, 30 Aug 2016 15:20:16 +0000 GoGoSnoGirl 2613533@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Agree with starting with the hospital &amp; finding an OB who can deliver there. Fwiw, my work &amp; home were 1hr+ apart, &amp; there was no way I was going to go that far to deliver. I worked short days or from home the days I had appointments, despite the frequency at the end. It worked fine in my situation. Good luck &amp; congrats! ☺</p> <p>Eta: My gp confirmed with blood tests for my 1st pregnancy. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/where-should-i-make-an-appointment#post-2613524 Tue, 30 Aug 2016 15:05:33 +0000 wheres_c 2613524@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I would look for a referal and make an appointment as soon as possible for a blood work. They can check HCG levels to make sure they are rising correctly and check progesterone. If your progesterone is low, there is a chance of a loss without supplementation. If my OB said I'd have to wait 8 weeks id find another one or get my primary care to check HCG and progesterone levels. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/where-should-i-make-an-appointment#post-2613519 Tue, 30 Aug 2016 14:58:33 +0000 snowjewelz 2613519@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Do you have a preference of what hospital to deliver at? If so, you will need to find an OB that delivers there. I actually hopped on local mom FB groups to see recommendations, etc. And narrow it down with whether they deliver at my preferred hospital and whether they take my insurance. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/where-should-i-make-an-appointment#post-2613510 Tue, 30 Aug 2016 14:43:44 +0000 Mrsbells 2613510@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Clementine12: you can try asking your primary care doctor for a referral but chances are they will refer you to someone in your old town. That happened to me with my last pregnancy. In that case I would look online for a new OB closer to you with good reviews and call them. Different OBs have different policies on how soon they will you </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/where-should-i-make-an-appointment#post-2613506 Tue, 30 Aug 2016 14:41:32 +0000 Truth Bombs 2613506@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Clementine12: it would just be tough to have your doc an hour away if you need to go in for something quick like bloowork, BP check, last minute ultrasound, etc. With both pregnancies I ended up with some issues that needed extra monitoring and it would have been hard to make all those appointments if the doc was an hour from my office. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/where-should-i-make-an-appointment#post-2613487 Tue, 30 Aug 2016 14:18:01 +0000 catlady 2613487@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'll tell you what I did, which is first I figured out which hospitals were completely covered by my insurance (there were a couple completely in-network and 100% covered and a few nearby which were semi-covered and would have had co-pays). I chose a hospital that was completely covered, close to my home (it was actually less close to work), and had a midwife group (this was important to me for my first pregnancy). My insurance didn't require a referral to see them so then I just called them directly, told them I was a new patient who was newly pregnant and wanted to see a midwife, and they booked me an appointment. I waited a bit (until I was about 6 weeks along) and I shouldn't have because I ended up having to wait 4 more weeks to come in. In later pregnancies, I called right away.</p> <p>ETA: I have never had to come in to "confirm" a pregnancy at my practice (and I have been pregnant 5 times now). They trust you to read a hpt. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/where-should-i-make-an-appointment#post-2613478 Tue, 30 Aug 2016 14:06:17 +0000 Shantuck 2613478@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>When I was first pregnant with my first, I went to an internist and did not have an OB. I went to my internist's office for a blood test to confirm the pregnancy and she provided me with a list of names of OB's. Once I got to the OB's office, they made me do another blood test to confirm the pregnancy (they wouldn't accept the results from my internist's office - not sure if it was because my internist's office ran a yes/no type test versus a quantitative test to confirm the amount of pregnancy hormone in my system). If you have any friends or family who might be able to tell you who they saw as an OB/GYN, it might save you the hassle of duplicating efforts and appointments. I essentially went to two different doctor's offices to confirm that I read the "pregnant" results on my HPT correctly. :wink: Congrats on your pregnancy! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/where-should-i-make-an-appointment#post-2613467 Tue, 30 Aug 2016 13:58:43 +0000 Clementine12 2613467@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Truth Bombs: I'm hoping I can have late afternoon appointments - head home early, have my husband there for the appt (he works early hours), then finish the work day that night. Maybe I'll look for someone in between?</p> <p>@Adira: I think I'll have to start my search with online reviews. It feels like a big choice to make! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/where-should-i-make-an-appointment#post-2613463 Tue, 30 Aug 2016 13:55:56 +0000 Raspberry 2613463@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Where I live, I had to confirm my pregnancy with a GP and get a referral to an OB. Your OB may also be assigned to deliver at a specific hospital, so my choice was also based on the hospital I wanted to be at.</p> <p>I agree with Truth Bombs that you should pick a practice close to work - toward the end of pregnancy you will be going to appointments on a biweekly and then a weekly basis so will need to slip in and out often. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/where-should-i-make-an-appointment#post-2613462 Tue, 30 Aug 2016 13:55:37 +0000 TapDancer 2613462@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Truth Bombs: Agree that I wish my OB was closer to work! Would be so much easier than trekking from the office for every appointment. </p> <p>@clementine12; I called my OB once I got a positive pregnancy test (wanted to get on their schedule ASAP -I think this would be especially important for you since you'll be a new patient) and they scheduled me for a first appointment at 8 weeks. I know some folks get the pregnancy initially confirmed by their GP or OB and then have the 8 or 10 week appointment, but that didn't occur to me at the time. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/where-should-i-make-an-appointment#post-2613446 Tue, 30 Aug 2016 13:36:08 +0000 Truth Bombs 2613446@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I would call your primary care physician and see if she can recommend an OBGYN. Once you pick an OBGYN, you'll want to call ASAP, they likely won't see you until 8 weeks, but there is probably a waiting list for new patient appointments so you want to get on their radar. I will say though, in my opinion, it's much more convenient to have your OB near your office rather than near your home as your appointments will be during business hours. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/where-should-i-make-an-appointment#post-2613444 Tue, 30 Aug 2016 13:35:45 +0000 Adira 2613444@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My OB/midwives were at the same practice as my general practice, so the location was the same for me, but I called and scheduled an appointment with an OB.</p> <p>Since you probably want to deliver locally, I'd see if you can find referrals to a local OB practice (or check out reviews on-line) and schedule an appointment with an OB who's local to you. They might not see you until ~8 weeks though. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/where-should-i-make-an-appointment#post-2613443 Tue, 30 Aug 2016 13:35:38 +0000 avivoca 2613443@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Clementine12: Congratulations! As for your questions, it really seems to depend on the provider. I see a CNM and even the OB's in the office won't bring you in until 10 weeks unless you have spotting. So my first appointment has always been at 10 weeks. The exception was when I went to the ER at 7 weeks with spotting and back pain, it turns out I had a bad UTI and they did a follow-up visit.</p> <p>Do you know where you want to deliver? That will influence who you start to see. But maybe have your GP confirm the pregnancy if they will do that and go from there. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/where-should-i-make-an-appointment#post-2613441 Tue, 30 Aug 2016 13:32:50 +0000 Clementine12 2613441@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I recently moved to a town about an hour away from my general practitioner. I haven't ever seen a gynecologist - my regular doctor handled b/c prescriptions and pap smears.</p> <p>I just tested positive yesterday - I'm unsure where to start here! Should I call the general practitioner (I work in the town where her office is) to have them confirm? They have an OB/GYN office in this doc's office, but I want someone close to where my home is, not where my work is.</p> <p>Should I call an OB/GYN? Would an OB see me this early, or would I be waiting until 8 weeks?</p> <p>How did you guys handle your first prenatal appointments? </p>