Getting Your Own doctor is “A Stab in the Dark”: Exploring the Presence Of On-Call Doctors at Hospital Births and Potential Implications for Nursing Practice

Abstract

Frequently women are attended by someone other than their chosen doctor during labor and delivery, that is, an “on-call” doctor. This chapter draws from interviews with 19 women who gave birth in a Mid-Atlantic state during late 1995 and early 1996. Of these women, 13 received care from an on-call doctor. Using existing social–psychological perspectives, the authors analyze situations in which an on-call doctor was present, and how this provider influenced women's birth experiences as well as satisfaction with those experiences. In general, women do not expect or desire on-call doctors’ presence. As a result, they may rely on obstetric nurses, rather than these unfamiliar doctors, when they need information or support.

Citation

Dillaway, H. and Rehan, S. (2006), "Getting Your Own doctor is “A Stab in the Dark”: Exploring the Presence Of On-Call Doctors at Hospital Births and Potential Implications for Nursing Practice", Jacobs Kronenfeld, J. (Ed.) Access, Quality and Satisfaction with Care (Research in the Sociology of Health Care, Vol. 24), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 81-105. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0275-4959(06)24005-5