This is such a common practice, it is almost universal. Of course, I have a bias since it is the same system we use in our practice. From a patient's point of view, the concern is that the doctors will not know you as well or have as close a relationship. The off-setting advantages are:

1. A group practice will tend to have a greater amount of available office hours and more locations for convenience.
2. There will be a familiar face when your preferred doctor is on vacation, in surgery, or otherwise unavailable.
3. More complicated issues will usually be discussed within the group and you will have the benefit of more physicians thinking about your care.
4. The fatigue of any one doctor will be limited as individual physicians in a group will be on call fewer consecutive nights.
5. As a rule, office appointments will be canceled less frequently due to deliveries.

Of course, patients ultimately prefer one system or the other, but as a practical matter, it is very difficult for a single individual to be continously "on call" for any length of time. This is why group or collaborative practice in obstetrics is so common.

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