Driving Distance while on call

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This is my rule of thumb -- one hour radius from my clients. I had a one-day workshop that I wanted to go to a few weeks back. It was a two-hour drive. I spoke with my clients about it beforehand and got a sense for their comfort level with that distance. They were fine with it, so I touched base with them the night before and just asked that they give me a heads up before 8 a.m. the next morning if there were anything "brewing." As it turned out, there was something brewing, and I didn't end up going. But I think this approach works well, and it's the tact I'll take again.

I think if you want to go any farther than an hour away, you need to check in with your clients first, and perhaps even have a back-up on alert while you're gone.

I live in Bangkok, notorious for the 10 hr traffic jam I tell my clients that even though on a good day it takes me 30 min. to get to them, that it could take me 2 hr the next. We discuss calling me way early into labor so I have a heads up and so that I can either come early to beat the traffic or wait until it's mostly done.

I did have a client that called at 8am when traffic was picking up and I knew she was going fast. I ended up running out to the street, waving down a motorcycle taxi (dangerous I know), zoomed/weaved in and out of traffic for 30 min. until I got to the first train station. Got off at the station nearest her apartment and literally ran the whole way. Met her at the door, taxi with police escort through middle of town in middle of rush hour. Walked into the birth unit and baby was born 20 min. later. First time mom, dad was still on the plane coming for the birth. That was by far the closest call!!!! In all, it was about 3 hr from the call until the birth.

The nice part about where I live is that I can pretty much get anywhere in our metro area in about an hour, typically. I have taken clients an hour and a half away, but don't do it often, and prefer to do it for clients who would be "rush hour proof" and who have history of longer labors or are first time moms. I try to get to my women in labor within the hour, prefer to get to them in 30 to 40 minutes, but it has been as long as 90 minutes in bad traffic (construction or accident induced).

I have also told clients if I was planning to go somewhere that might take me more than an hour to get to them...but the liklihood of a mother *WHAM!* going into labor and then having the baby before I can get to her is pretty low. I have contact with them before I leave to go wherever it is I'm going and they know that they are always to call me as soon as they realize they are in labor, and then we keep in contact every hour or two until their labor is rocking and rolling. That typically gives me PLENTY of time to decide it's time to head toward home/the laboring mama from wherever I am, be it the theater, the baseball game, or our extended family's summer cottage (an hour and fifteen minutes from my house).