Intown Midwifery vs. North Fulton Midwives

[laurac5]

Some of these questions might be better answered by PM.

Can someone explain to me what is different about Intown Midwifery that you would recommend them over one of the midwives at North Fulton?  I've only ever had homebirths and am nervous about having a hospital birth here in Georgia, so my instinct is to go for the lowest C-section rates and somewhere closer to home -- i.e. North Fulton.  But I keep getting nudged towards IM.  Can anyone tell me something concrete?

And does anyone know what is happening with the Atlanta Midwifery group? Does anyone know what changes are being made to the birthing suites at North Fulton?  

Edited by laurac5 - 3/29/12 at 6:00pm

[dctexan]

I had a birth with North Fulton back in 2007 (when Margaret was still with the practice) and a subsequent birth with Intown this past February. My experience with Intown was much better than my experience with North Fulton. I believe the main difference is that North Fulton is mainly an OB practice, where the midwives were "allowed" to treat patients. At Intown the whole practice is basically midwives. There is a supervising OB, but he is incredibly hands off and has his own practice going off site. Therefore there isn't an OB office culture to deal with during visits.

I will say that North Fulton hospital rooms looks nicer than Atlanta Medical's rooms (which looks like they are straight from a mental hospital, truth be told) BUT my experience with the nursing staff at Atlanta Medical was vastly superior to my experiences at North Fulton. Also, I think that for your best chance you will have for an unmedicated, least invasive HOSPITAL birthyou need to be with Margaret's practice. Not sure what the current culture is at North Fulton, but I will say my experiences with the OBs there was...not good. I really prefer to not see or hear from an OB during my pregnancy and birth unless it is absolutely necessary. I think in 2007, the OBs had a tough time letting go completely and it created some tension and made the midwives feel pressured in a way that went against what they might have done without the OBs breathing down their necks.

All of that being said, if you are used to home birth experience, you should probably try to go that route again. I didn't really get warm fuzzies from Intown (the practice is really just too busy for that) and during labor the midwife will pop in to check on you, but really isn't there to support like she would be for a home birth (of course you can get an excellent doula to help bridge the gap there). Also, by doing a home birth you will not have to deal with the annoying medical things that go along with being in a hospital (people trying to take your blood, people wanting to give you an IV, people taking your blood pressure every 2 hours, etc.).

Hopefully that gives you something concrete to go on. Congrats on your pregnancy!

[laurac5]

That is very helpful; thanks!  Would you mind telling me some specifics on what the OB's do?

Regarding the homebirth option... I've spent a lot of time thinking about homebirth in GA, and the thing is, I had those two homebirths because it was 100% legal for both me and the midwife in the state where I was living at the time.  I would not have considered it if that weren't the case, and once I considered it this time around, I ran into some concrete things that make me uncomfortable with having one given the legal situation here.  I am a stubborn girl and am 100% willing to do something that I don't really want to do once I decide to do it.  There's no changing my mind about this one, except from the legislature.   

The goal now is to plan the best hospital birth I can.  That plan will definitely include a doula.

[pattimomma]

My sister used Intown and I was there for the birth. She did have a natural water birth but I wasn't impressed with the care. Postpartum was particularly bad. If you want details or have specific questions then feel free to PM me. I have no info to offer as far as North Fulton. I have had 3 homebirths here in GA and my midwife has a doc that backs her up so if I ever needed transport I was covered. She is licensed in TN and nationally. In the case of twins you should try Dr Joe Tate he "lets" multiples deliver vaginally. Actually he had a patient that delivered triplets vaginally last year. Check out GA birth network you may find more information about Intown vs N Fulton there. 

[thorn]

I agree with what dctexan posted. I am not a fan of any of the OBs that the midwives practice with at N. Fulton. If you want to get more robust opinions that don't need to be via PM, you can check out the provider reviews section on ICAN of Atlanta's forum www.icanofatlanta.com/board/index.php

Also, Kay Johnson can legally attend homebirths in GA - she is a CNM who has OB backup. http://www.gamidwife.com

[Jillian78]

I haven't used either set of midwives, however I plan to use Intown with our final baby. My reasoning is actually Dr. Bootstaylor. He was my perinatologist on my only pregnancy (out of 5) that went to full term. He was compassionate and wonderful to deal with, so in my book, if you can love the OB, its a good fit. He never once discouraged me from my natural birth plans, despite the fact I had a history of preterm babies. Says a lot! I'm hoping to time my final pregnancy with the opening of the new birth center next year. :)

[Babycare]

I have had clients who birth with both sets of midwives and they all have wonderful things to say. Like Jillian78, I have a mom who is having twins her first babies and is using Dr. Brad Bootstaylor she is 37weeks and wants to go natural. If you are looking for a referrals for Labor or Postpartum Doulas please let me know, I have a great network of professionals.
 

[csmidwife]

You may want to consider atlanta midwife. The midwives are very experienced and professional.

[LisaSedai]

Who is the backup OB at Atlanta Midwives?