Every parent wants the best for their baby from the moment they find out he or she will come to the world. The excitement is usually mixed with some anxiousness especially in the beginning when both the mother and the father have to get used to the new situation. Apart from the regular monitoring, checks and tests performed by the gynecologist, you can also use some methods to monitor the development and condition of the baby at home. The fetal Doppler is a widely used device that allows for the baby’s heartbeat to be heard and for a digital readout to be displayed on the monitor. It is absolutely safe and cannot harm the fetus and the woman in any way. There are models that are available for home use and millions of parents have taken advantage of them to stay reassured of the fetus’s condition and to further bond with the baby. Generally once you decide to use the Fetal Doppler you will be offered the opportunity to rent it or to purchase it.
The rental option is usually the one most parents find beneficial. The rental charge per month is somewhere between $20 and $50 depending on the model’s features and not on the quality of the product. The main advantage of renting a fetal Doppler is that you can keep it any time you like and be automatically charged through your credit card on a monthly basis. You will have to pay the first installment upon ordering the product and then each one for as long as you keep it. Usually there are discount offers for preliminary set longer periods of use such as three or six months. The payment options are flexible – you can pay for the entire period of use in advance as well. Another advantage of the fetal Doppler rental is that most marketers offer a discount if you decide to purchase a device from them. The disadvantages of this type of hire are that you cannot be certain whether the product has been previously used and/or damaged and that the contract is usually quite strict.
You can also choose to buy a brand new Fetal Doppler, but this will cost you somewhere between $100 and $150 for the standard good quality models. This is a fine option as long as you can afford it, but if you are put off by the price you can always choose the rental one. On the other hand, if this is your first child and you plan to have more, the one time purchase might turn out to be much cheaper. You can always share the price with family members or friends and use the device in turns as long as you feel comfortable with this.
Before deciding, which of the two options is better for you, you might want to discuss the use of the fetal Doppler with your gynecologist or general health provider. They will be able to tell you how often and for what period of time you can use the device.
