Being pregnant and giving birth in Mongolia.

I posted a blog (linked here) letting my friends back home know that I'm pregnant. I talk a bit about the experience here so far. I live in Darkhan, and it seems most people here are in UB. I saw a bunch of pregnant Australian mining exec wives at 40K Bistro last month, I imagine they are going to English speaking doctors, since they had Mongolian nannies watching their other kids. I see two doctors in Darkhan, one who speaks some English and one who doesn't. I have paid all of about $120 for services so far, and I'm 4 months pregnant. I look Mongolian, and have a Mongolian husband in a city with few foreign residents, so that has a lot to do with it.

Been here since 1999 and wouldn't recommend giving birth. So many reasons; I've been pregnant here three times--one time being now.  GOing to Thailand when I'm seven months. They do not have NICU equipment up to par and have some strange customs about not washing after birth and not allowing guests.  They do have ultrasound equipment so prenatal care is not too bad. That's my two cents!

Oh, no, there are no English speaking midwives or doctors to attend. Wish there were!

Wow... interesting. I'll be staying here because it will be harder to get my Mongolian husband a visa to go on vacation to have the baby, and I'd rather be with him and his family (who collectively have birthed and raised many children here successfully) then in an even more foreign country with no support system.

Midwives and maternity wards in the US (and other parts of the Western world) have lots of strange "customs" too.

Very interesting, where have you been Sarah? Prenatal and postnatal care is not bad. You can always hire a medical interpreter for doctor's visits.

So, I gave birth in Darkhan in December. I had a doctor who spoke some English, and another who spoke very little. My husband (Mongolian) came with me to all of my prenatal visits. I had a planned c-section that went very smoothly with zero complications and now have a very healthy, happy 4 month old baby girl. I can't imagine  going through the experience without the women in my Mongolian family by my side to support me since my own friends and family weren't here. The hospital was fine. Clean, organized, and the staff took care of me, even though they spoke no English. It was also under $600 for the whole experience, which included 4 nights and 5 days at the maternity hospital.

Is there any hospital or clinic u could recommend? Or a good ob gyne maybe. Thanks.

I gave birth in Darkhan. There's a FB group called Mums in Mongolia that can connect you with other women in UB that may have recommendations for services there.

thanks..and does anyone here know where i could find prenatal milk?? american shops that sell prenatal milk?? thank you.

I've never seen it anywhere here. Maybe ask around the MiM group.

Okay thanks about that!~ Im wondering about maternity leave in mongolia, i have been informed that mongolians do get a year leave from work,  but would it be also applicable to non mongolians with mongolian fiance? well, the baby is mongolian of course. Or the company has the right to terminate the contract, employee has to reapply instead of return to work?

I'm not actually really familiar, since I worked only part-time during my pregnancy. I would recommend talking to your employer about it and see what their policy is, just like anywhere else. I know that a friend of mine (Mongolian) had a hard time getting a job when her daughter was 5 months old. She faced some potential employers who thought she wouldn't stick around, or would be unreliable. I was very disappointed to hear that for her. Depending on the line of work you're in, it may be different.