Posted by
DecAug
16 yrs ago
Dr Philip Ho is well reputed as a good fertility doctor, any idea if he is good in delivery babies?
Does anyone have experience with him on how good he is in terms
(1) Being there on the date of delivery/emergency
(2) Being able to react/decide promptly during complication
Any other feedback will be most welcome as well. Thank you.
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DecAug,
I can give you feedback on Dr. Ho in respect of elective C-section in a couple of weeks time. I did IUI with Dr. Ho and decided to stay with him as my OB because I have compared him with other OB and feel more comfortable and confident with him (and Kelly). Because he is a RE, he is also more experienced when it comes to dealing with pregnant women at my age.
In the latter part of the pregnancy - third trimester, he is also not giving me scans everytime - in fact I have been getting heart beat checks on the baby as opposed to scans. He also use his hands to feel the baby and tell me the position - given that if we were back in Canada - they only give you 2 scans in the whole pregnancy (so I have heard). I dont want to exposre our Baby to unnecessary scans.
HF
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Thanks HF!! You will be delivering soon? Congrats!!! Would love to hear your feedback on Dr Ho when you feel better after :) I did hear and read that he is an EXCELLENT C-section doctor. I am very sure you are in good hands.
Will you be delivering in Mathilda?
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DecAug,
Yes - I will be delivering soon - at the Matilda. I have been pleased with him so far - whether comparing him with the other OB that was with or comparing notes with other friends. I find him to be very professional and experienced - he is a man of very few words and does not paint a rosy picture for you but he is a GREAT OB. I will let you know once I am in the position to answer the other questions that you have asked.
HF
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Thank you so much for your assurance. I like him too.
Have also registered myself for Matilda. Hopefully I can get up the windy single lane road all fine :) Cos that's my only concern about Matilda (i.e. getting there during emergency). Otherwise, have heard awesome things about the hospital.
Apology, my first pregnancy, so a little nervous!
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You wanted feedback and unfortunately that means opinions on both sides. From what I understand Dr. Ho is very C-section happy. When I had my child, 5/10 of the ladies in my ante-natal group at the Matilda had him as their OB and all of them ended up with emergency C sections. When I delivered my baby, 2 of my friends where in the next rooms delivering and they both had him as their Doc. They both ended up with emergency C-sections with the parents questioning his advice. From what I hear he is very busy and he does a lot of C-sections and will advise that route if the slightest complication arises. I know my post is not what you want to hear but if anything you may want to bring this up with him. I did talk to my own Doc (Dr. Alex Doo) before I delivered my son and I told him I would be really pi$$ed off if he advised a C with no good reason. I did have a few complications but he patiently waited it out and we delivered a healthy baby. By the way I was the only person that day out of 12 to naturally deliver at the Matilda. The midwives here will tell you that HK is very pro C section. Good luck and sorry to rain on the parade. I am sure there are women who have had natural deliveries with him, but he does have a reputation for this. I do know however that he is a very good fertility doctor.
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Thank you Angsana. Your feedback is very much appreciated. I would definitely like to hear all aspects of his strengths/weaknesses. Personally I would prefer to have a natural delivery, unless the complication warrants a C Section. And I did hear that Dr Ho is C-section friendly. I would not be happy as well if he cuts me up for no good valid reason!!
What I would appreciate is a doctor who knows what to do at emergency and is decisive, cos I do have friends who have waited long and caused complication to the babies. I think I need to let him know that I would like to go the natural route unless he deems it absolutely necessary that I have a C-section.
Thanks again for your advice!!!!
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DecAug,
I have been seeing Dr. Ho for over 12 yrs and he delivered my first baby at the Adventist 3 years ago. Baby no 2. is due end March. I'm more then happy with him and can only recommend him. I cannot confirm the C-section friendly attitude as I told him beforehand that I definitely wanted to have a natural birth and only in an absolute emergency would opt for c-section. I had a relative easy birth but my baby's heartbeat slowed down at the end. When he asked me to push harder I just told him 'give me a c-section for f... sake!' He just laughed and the baby was delivered minutes later. He came to the hospital every morning to check on me. Talk to him openly about the C section issue. a lot of women opt for it themselves so some of the decision reg C-section might not be made by him. Of course it's easier for him, he can schedule a date in his diary i/o of rushing out of the house at 3 am. I'm convinced he won't do a c-section if you tell him that you only want one if absolutely necessary. You are in very good hands with him.
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Thank you very much everyone for your feedback.
I understand that the nurses/mid-wives are very important when it comes to natural birth, any experience with the nurses/mid-wives in Matilda?
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-sa
16 yrs ago
I used to go to Dr. Ho but was paranoid that he would be C-section happy so I switched to Dr. Lord. I found C-sec rates are much lower; she is very good with them which you want in case of emergency and she wont push for it unless absolutely necessary. I was very keen to have my birth plan followed. Also, Annerley midwives will not act as doulas with Dr Ho.
The midwives at Matilda are the best. Ann, who helped me through a natural- no drugs, vaginal birth.... can't tell you enough how encouraging, present and thoughtful she was. Later during my stay, I forget the names... they were awesome with helping me with breastfeeding and taking care of me.
If you are going to drive to the hospital and you are worried to get on time- your husband must take a test drive during night time to the destination. Getting to Matilda can sometimes be tricky and you don't want to loose your way while you are in labour! If in a taxi, then there should not be any trouble but do have a sense of how long it takes.
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Thanks a lot -sa!
Why wouldn't Annerley act as doulas as Dr Ho? Any particular reason?
Thanks for assurances on the Matilda mid-wives, very reassuring.
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I would have to disagree with Angsana. My experience with Dr Ho was excellent. There was no mention of C-section at all. In my birthplan I requested for no episotomy, no drugs (was doing hypnobirthing) and minimal intervention. At the end of the day I had to be induced, but Dr Ho didn't rush me at all and I delivered naturally 4 hours later with no stiches required at all- the adrenalin rush afterwards was incredible, definately will do it again and will definately go back to Dr Ho
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btw- I did ask Dr Ho about having a doula and he told me to save the money bcos the midwives at Matilda in theory act as doulas and were very good .I'm glad I took his advice as Angie, my midwife was fantastic- told me how to B/F straight after birth and gave all sorts of advice. My friend who gave birth 1 month after me in Canossa didn't have such a good experience- didn't get to BF her baby until the next day and found all sorts of problems latching on- the nurses she said didn't help her that much.Anyway my 2 cents
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OK, so it's really good that you've heard both sides of the story about Dr. Ho. Some think he is great, others think he is a bit C-Section happy. There is no doubt that he is a brilliant Doctor. In fact I would say that HK has some of the best fertility docs in the world, but also some of the most commercial minded which sometimes spills over into their service. I knew this before my delivery in 2005 because other people and the antenatal teacher at Matilda warned us that HK Chinese Docs are very C-section happy because it is the easy option. I then went to my own Doc (Dr. Doo) and asked him about his emergency C-Section rate and the times he would administer this. I also asked him questions about what would happen if he had an IVF scheduled for the e.g. afternoon my baby wanted to come out (after all thats HK$70,000 for him right!) After this I hammered it home to him why I wanted natural delivery and how upset I would be if I was given an unnecessary C. In my birth plan I also outlined this, of course also stating that I would have one if really necessary. I certainly gave Dr. Doo the impression that I was onto him if he started trying to scaremonger me into one. I think you should do the same with Dr. Ho. In fact anyone who really wants a natural delivery should be talking about this with their Doc irrespective of who they are. Having an emergency C is not just a walk in the park. It is actually quite a big deal in my book because it means that all subsequent pregnancies will also probably result in a C section. Plus having a C means that you are laid up for 6 weeks afterwards and unable to drive etc. which can be a real pain in the butt. It is worth investing the time talking to your Doc beforehand to make sure you avoid this.
As for the midwives, I think the one you get will be pot luck. There are a few Western Nurses who would argue black was white but most of them are Malaysian or HK Chinese. The one I had was great (Malaysian) but there was no way she would have argued my case with Dr. Doo.
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-sa
16 yrs ago
I think C sec in case of a problem is a very tricky situation because it depends on what you or your Dr define as a problem. It is very hard to argue with a Dr (who is the expert) otherwise. My concern mostly was if the doc decides to perform a Csec at the slightest of speed bumps. The midwives at Matilda will never argue for your birth plan since they will basically tailor their response in line with the Dr's philosophy, you are a patient with. They are not in a position to do otherwise. Where as Annerley midwives will and a lot of Dr's don't like to have their opinions challenged in case a difference of opinion crops up.
I have had 4 friends deliver with Dr. Ho- 3 had C sec, the 4th one made elaborate plans (in case she goes over 40 weeks) to avoid getting into a situation where she might be pressured in to getting a Csec. Going back to your original questions, yes, he is a very good with delivering babies. But, if you would like to go the natural route, I would ask him some questions Angsana raised with her Dr. And in the end it really depends upon how much you connect and trust your Dr.
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I just delivered by C-section with Dr. Ho. It went really well. I was walking normally the next day after the C-section. The whole procedure went well.
My friend who got pregnant with no.2 by treatments from Dr. Ho also stayed with Dr. Ho as her ob. Because she had no. 1 by normal delivery - she opted for normal delivery for no. 2 - there were no issues with Dr. Ho - she was very happy with Dr. Ho - no issues whatsoever.
HF
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Congrats HF!!! And thank you very much for replying on this thread so soon after your delivery.
I am into my 13th week now and am still very pleased with Dr Ho.
Did you elect for C-section? And I trust you are very pleased with Matilda as well? Did you get the type of room you elect?
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Congrats HF!!! And thank you very much for replying on this thread so soon after your delivery.
I am into my 13th week now and am still very pleased with Dr Ho.
Did you elect for C-section? And I trust you are very pleased with Matilda as well? Did you get the type of room you elect?
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DecAug,
Yes, I elected for C-section because of medical reasons. I was pleased with Matilda and did get the room type I chose.
Hf
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MayC,
Thank you for your kind wishes. The joy is beyond anything I had imagined. Our daughter is healthy and gorgeous and I still pinch myself from time to time to make sure we are not dreaming. All the stress and tears during the last 2 years of TTC have been worth it - we got more than what we prayed for. We thank god everyday for our bundle of joy.
I am doing fine after the C-section. Dr. Ho did a fantastic job - and I have not even been on painkillers since leaving the hospital. I also dont feel the tension from the stitching - am walking like normal. I have been stressed about breastfeeding - but I have accepted supplementing with formula is not the end of the world for LOL.
I have been following your threads. Wishing you and your DH with tons of babydust in 2009.
HF
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MayC, I have sent you a PM. Thank you. HF
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I was with Dr Ho for both my fertility treatments and delivery and he was excellent. I had no pressure whatsoever from him re. a c-section and I actually delivered naturally without any medication. Dr Ho arrived at the hospital within 20mins of calling him and my son was delivered 10mins later. I recovered well and was walking around and going about my daily activities the next day. He also visited every day to check on my recovery. A very responsible doctor and certainly knows his stuff.
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I am seeing Dr Ho and I'm now 33 weeks pregnant. At my last scan I was advised that the baby was on the large side (95th percentile - ouch!) so I broached the subject of whether this would mean a C-Section. Dr Ho was very reassuring and said no reason that it should mean a C-Section and I can certainly go natural. I was very encouraged by the whole conversation. My overall impression is that he will err on the side of caution, but that's fine by me and I don't think he will do a C-Section for the sake of it if that's not what you want. From everyone I've spoken to there are very few Doctors here who are as pro-natural deliveries as in say UK or Australia so it's not just in relation to him. For example I hear Dr Ghosh also has a very high C-Section rate.
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----
16 yrs ago
Dr. Ghosh has high C section rate since women with pretty high risk pregnancies go to him not because he has a flourishing IVF practice he needs to attend to.
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I have two girls both delivered by Dr Ho and I would really like to have a boy if I am to have a third baby. Has anyone seeked advice from Dr Ho on gender selection of your babies? How would you think he will react if I ask?
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