One of the most important decisions you will have to make during your pregnancy is who is going to be your OB/GYN. Hopefully you will be able to stick with your current doctor. Unfortunately, I was not able to. Not because I didn’t like her, but because my needs changed once I became pregnant. Here are four things you need to take into consideration when choosing a doctor and why I needed to make a change.

The first and I think most important thing to find out is what hospital they deliver at. Don’t assume that because the hospital of your choice is in the same area, that your doctor goes there. Or if you don’t have a preference of a hospital, then you need to find out if the one they deliver at takes your insurance.

Next, are they close to your home? In the beginning you will go once every four weeks. Then every 3 weeks, then every 2 weeks, then once a week once you hit the end (at least that was how it went for me). So make sure you pick someone close to you, especially if you work and plan on running to appointments afterwards. These were the two reasons I needed to switch doctors. When I moved in with Dave I decided to keep seeing my OB at the time because she was only 30-40 minutes away, she was right by my parents house, and I only needed to see her once a year. It didn’t make sense to switch. Until we started talking about having a baby. Now a 30 minute drive for all those doctors appointments suddenly didn’t seem as reasonable anymore. Plus, the hospital she delivered at was almost an hour away WITHOUT traffic. Not ideal for Dave to drive back and forth to get me the things I needed, take care of the dog, and drive my stepson back and forth.

This next one I didn’t have a particular experience with but I have a few friends who did. If you have any preexisting medical condition such as diabetes or a thyroid issue you may need to see a specialist. Again, I didn’t have any experience with this so I can’t exactly tell you what steps to take in this case, however, your current OB will be able to advise you on this. In my current pregnancy I have a thyroid condition that developed FROM the pregnancy, so I am currently seeing an endocrinologist, and am able to still see my normal doctor, but I don’t know if it makes a difference if you go into the pregnancy with a thyroid issue. But it’s definitely something to ask about.

Lastly, if you have a particular birth plan, make sure your doctor is on board with it. If they are not, don’t feel you need to change your plans; change your doctor instead. With Joey I didn’t have any particular plan, but I did know that in addition to my husband being in the delivery room, I also wanted my mother. Luckily, my new doctor was fine with whoever I wanted in the room.

Remember, even if your current OB fits all these criteria, you need to be able to have a good relationship with them. So if your not comfortable with spending the next 40 weeks with them, then it may be time to move on.