prenatal care in the DR/ learning spanish

As this is your second post, and welcome to the forum, I have to ask why do you want to move here and are you planning on having a baby here?
Prenatal care will be best in the cities and almost non existant in the more rural areas. And depending on where you are moving from certainly not nearly as good or extensive as what you could get back home.

Bob K

Welcome to the forum.  You will find the prenatal care less available outside of the cities as Bob indicated. You also will not be able to get insurance here either until after the baby is born.  As you don't yet speak Spanish this may not be the best idea!   

Depending where you intend to live I am sure someone on here can help with doctor and tutor recommendations.  Have you been here before? Do you know anyone?

hi thanks for the welcome

actually before i found out i was expecting i planned a 3 month trip to santo domingo to improve my spanish.

when i got the news i contemplated whether it was still a good idea or not. that is why i asked about the prenatal care and tutoring possibilities.

Boy I would rethink your plans if you are only going to be here for 3 months. It will be hard to find a job for a three month period and again prenatal care may be an issue especially if you are in your first or second trimester as they do not have the same testing or care standards here that you would get back home.

Bob K

I can only speak from experience being pregnant in my home country, but I don't think I would add the stress of a new country, a new language, to the stress one already experiences being pregnant. Especially if its the first time. If you're in the city, the fumes from cars etc are horrible for morning sickness! The food will be new for you, and considering all the things you're not supposed to eat during pregnancy that might also make it hard. But we are all different, maybe you can handle all those extra things. I'm sure I couldn't. I've only been in the city for less than two weeks, and even though I like it here its stressful at times with all the changes (and Spanish is my second language - although not dominican Spanish which is also difficult  for me). I wouldn't do it if I was pregnant - but what's right for me of course isn't necessarily right for you

As most people said I would rethink your plans if you will be here for that long and pregnant especially if you have no family here, but with that said. It is possible to get good prenatal care in DR but using only the "good" hospitals. Last year I was pregnant here in DR for two months before I went back to the States and I went to Hospital Metropolitano in Santiago. The care I can assure you is US quality (or better actually) you might even find doctors that are a little bilingual. The first appointment is  typically $1500 RD and $1000 RD after that. I think it is well worth it and probably a lot cheaper than some copayments for insurances in the US. Overall I did like the quality of the care the "good" hospital offer and the facilities are usually in optimum conditions. You can go straight to the hospital's info desk and they can tell you if they have English speaking doctors.

Here is the link:
homshospital.com/

Buena suerte and congrats on your baby!
Eli

I agree with HOMs hospital in Santiago being top notch for the DR. I disagree with the prenatal care being on par or better than in the US.

Bob K

Lol... I was recommended to homs by other "white women" who are choosing to have their baby in the DR instead of the U.S. because of the excellent care one can afford here. I mean in the US you barely get two ultrasounds with most insurances while here that's a given in every visit if that's what you want, and they actually get to know you, not like in the US where we're just last names. [Moderated: inappropriate words]
E.

Sorry you feel that way about the care in the US. I practiced Ob/Gyn for over 20 years in the US including 18 years of teaching residents.  I don't feel that any of my patients felt that way.
No matter what you say the care still is better in the US.

Bob K

Bob she needed you as her doctor!

It might have changed her opinion for sure

Bob K