Midwife vs. Obstetrician: Key Differences Explained

Question
what is the difference betwen a midwife and an obstatrician?

Answer
Hello Tery. An OB/GYN is a medical doctor who has gone through about nine years of medical training. An OB is first and foremost a surgeon. He/She specializes in the care of high risk pregnancies stictly in a hospital setting. They have very little or NO experience with caring for healthy, normal women in pregnancy. They do not do a good job of preventing problems in healthy women.
A midwife is sometimes a nurse first, who takes extra training in the care of normal women in pregnancy and birth. Not all midwives are nurses first- and that is just fine- there is really no need to be a nurse first. There are two types of midwifery schools- those that train nurses to be midwives and those that train non- nurses to be midwives. A midwife is the specialist for healthy women in low risk pregnancy. She is highly skilled at maintaining the health and low risk status of these women using nutritional guidance and counseling. A midwife is qualified to oversee the labor and birth of these women in whatever setting the mother chooses- that may be in a hospital, birthing center or her home. I hope that answers your question- if not, feel free to get back to me- Cheri.