When having a baby is a totally new experience there are questions you should ask that you would never have thought to ask. For example you may choose your gynaecologist carefully but not realise that it’s highly unlikely he/she will actually deliver your baby. In Bermuda, obstetricians rotate a monthly on call, so who delivers your baby largely depends on who is on call for the month you give birth.

Below is a suggested list of questions to ask before choosing an obstetrician.

1. How likely is it that you’ll be present when I give birth?

2. What is your policy on ultrasound?

3. What forms of pain relief do you recommend?

4. How many women in your practice give birth without pharmacological pain relief?

5. What do you think about doulas?

6. How often am I likely to see you while I’m in labour?

7. What labour procedures do you do routinely?

8. What methods do you suggest to help labour pain be more tolerable?

9. Can the nurses monitor my baby’s heart rate intermittently?

10. Do you perform episiotomies routinely? How often to women in your care give birth without episiotomy?

11. Can I eat and drink in labour?

12. If I go into labour, check into the hospital and my labour slows down before I get very far, can I go home?

13. What is your induction rate? What methods do you use?

14. Can I walk around in labour?

15. Is there a time limit for labour? How long can I push?

16. Can I choose the position for giving birth? Can I give birth on my hands and knees if I like that position? (On the floor, bed, in the bathroom?)

17. What is your Caesarean section rate?

18. This may seem like a personal question, but (if female) can I ask if you ever gave birth vaginally?

19. This may seem like a personal question, but (if male and a father) can I ask if any of your children were born vaginally?

20. What is your forceps and vacuum extraction rate?

21. Will you cut the umbilical cord after it quits pulsating?

22. Can you put the baby on my chest (skin-to-skin contact) after birth?

23. Do you participate in regular peer review?

Certified local doula Sophia Cannonier suggests that if any of the above questions provokes resentment, sarcasm, hostility, scare tactics, vague or patronising answers, keep shopping.

She said: “You would likely not put up with such treatment in a restaurant, and finding the right caregiver for you during pregnancy and birth is a far more important decision to make than where you eat a meal.”