Phone calls by patients may be your clinician’s biggest headaches. Following a few simple procedures when telephoning may eliminate confusion:

1. Call during regular office hours whenever possible. Give information to the nurse. If it is a routine question, she may be able to give you an immediate answer, and she can always determine the necessity of your speaking with the clinician directly. If she cannot come over the phone she may relay your question and your clinician may call you back as soon as possible.

2. Any time you call, whether it is to the office during the day or directly to the clinician during non-office hours, give her your full name, when you last saw the clinician, and your present month of pregnancy. Describe your situation in concrete terms. How much blood is being passed? How often? What does it look like? When did you last urinate? About how much? How much water did you drink since then? How often are your headaches? If there is swelling, where? For how long? Being specific can facilitate treatment.

3. Make the call yourself if at all possible. Relying messages through a third party may give your clinician misleading information.

4. Always have a pencil and paper at the phone before you call. Note down whatever you are told to do. Making an emergency phone call when you are upset may cause you to misunderstand your clinician’s instructions.

5. At the beginning of your last month, you should ask your clinician when she wants to be called after labor begins.