Men

[Hal100]

Regarding the OP...
despite peoples' intelligent arguments as to why there's absolutely no problem with a man going into O&G, I think that, sadly, there will always be a certain stigma around them doing it..especially from people who are closed-minded or just plain ignorant

[Clarabelle]

Surprisingly though, when you're actually at the coal face, I have never known a woman decline a male doctor when in labour and needing medical treatment. And I have a fair number of friends who are male midwives and they don't tend to have a problem. I know one male midwife who left the course but his problem wasn't that he was a man, it was that he was a twat.

[Singh.Simran]

I don't think that's surprising. Most people are clever enough to realise it's a doctor they want, not a woman.

[mistyblue]

after recently having a baby thought i'd give my view....

when i was 'with it' earlier on in the labour would have been totally embarrassed by having a male doc/midwife, prejudiced i know but this is i think a subconscious thing in that the patient is not used to people (esp if first baby) seeing their private parts....even the female doc/midwife doing it I found uncomfortably embarassing....

now after nearly 30 hours and having to go to theatre i had a male doc(who is also the subdean at my ob placement later this year which I didn't know at the time...a whole new level of embarrassment!!!)
also a male theatre assistant who was absolutely lovely and made going to theatre not as scary and halfway through a male aneasthetist was swapped from the female one as her shift finished.....
i didn't think to ask for a female although still slighlty embarrassed before i went down....

now when I went it was no difference to female docs and i was just glad that they were getting my baby here finally...


now if i have a 2nd baby I will not mind a male obst at any point as it does not make a difference....i hopefully next time won't need the services of any doc just my midwife, but if I do I don't care whether it is a man or a woman I just want the most competent one who will deliver the baby without me getting ripped to shreds and sew me up right