My Gynae

I was introduced to my gynae about 2 years ago by WY who was introduced to him by an ex-cell group member. Before I even met him I have heard stories about how strict he is, both in terms of looks and dealing with patients. I was told not to ask any silly questions. I was also told that he prefers planned deliveries instead of the non-planned ones, so that would mean induced delivery or the pre-booked C-Section.

My first appointment with him was actually to do the normal check up to see if I should take any precaution if I were to get pregnant. My first impression of him was just as what I was told. Strict and not so friendly, "get the job done" type kind of person. I was, however, intrigued by him and continued with him when I was pregnant with Arielle. Moreover, his clinic was rather convenient and I could go for my appointments on Saturdays without causing disruption to my work schedule. I did ask him questions about the pregnancy and he did answer willingly although his smiles were hard to come by.

WIth Arielle, at 39 weeks, he suggested an induced labour as he said that my water level was low and that was a danger to the baby. I did ask him if I could wait till the EDD before going for the induced labour but he expressed concern for the baby, so, Jon and I say ok. So maybe I thought he wanted my delivery to be a confirmed date and did not really know the seriousness of a the water level being low until I read recently in a magazine that, that was one of the reasons for induced delivery. As in my previous post on Arielle's birth, I was induced on the first day from 7 to 12 p.m. but still could not dialate , so I heard my gynae scheduling me for a C sect already on that day. I then requested to give another chance for natural labour and surprisingly, he did allow me to try again the next day, but with a wry smile which sort of read that no matter what I may still have to go for the Op. But when I could not take the pain after the burst of the water bag and when he found that baby already poo poo in the womb, the next day, he wheeled me in for the C. During Arielle's time, when I went back for a postnatal check up and he found that my feet were swelling, his face showed genuine concern and told me there was a possibility of blood clot and asked me to go back and lift my feet up. All went well after. Oh ..and I forgot to mention that at the hospital he wears this cute little bow tie, most of the time its maroon I think...:)..looks quite cute.

When I found out I was pregnant with Aaron, I wanted to change gynae as I was of the impression that my current gynae would not allow me to try natural (he did inform me that since I had the C for my first one, I am not allowed to deliver again before 1 year is up) as all the time in my mind, he will take every opportunity to schedule deliveries so there is a possibility that he might just ask to do the C straight away. So I did visit a hospital near my place to see if the gynae and facilities were ok. The hospital was too new and there were only 2 gynaes, and I was not so comfortable with them after reading their profiles. The other option was a private medical centre at Taman Desa which was rcommended by a friend, but that was too far. So back to my old gynae I went. After all have only one dr seeing all of me rather than having so many other. Ha ha. My appointments with him were quite good and he did smile often. No mention was made about the mode of delvery until the 37th week when he asked and I indicated the fact I wanted to go for natural. He allowed but he did warn me when I was at 40 weeks and not in labour yet that there was a possibility that even when I go for induced labour, there was a possibility that my cervix will not dialate as what happened the last time, and I guess being an experienced Dr with over 30 years of experience, he predicted correctly. He told me during the op that Aaron's head was already engaged and that if my cervix was loose enough, I could have delivered Aaron normally. Sigh! Well at least he gave me the opportunity to try for natural delivery. Recently when I went for my postnatal checkup, he found certain parts of my wound swelling and he had this genuine worried look on his face, gave me antibiotics and told me to see him at the hospital in a couple of days.When I saw him at the hospital, he found my wound to be much better and when he said it I could hear the true happiness in his voice. He prescribed me some antibiotic cream and I will have to see him again this Thursday.

To summarise, I think my gynae will not make decisions base on his convenience and will advise accordingly base on each of his patient's medical condition. He is genuinely concern for the welfare of each of his patient and is quick to act in emergencies. I admire him and I think he is worth it to go to. I did ask him when he will retire during the op and he gave a rather interesting answer.."when I am unable to see". I guess he is indeed passionate about his job, not just the money in it. Keep up the good work shang's gynae!