what if you don't know

[admin]

I see all these posts about depositions and I get very worried- I really don't know what happened in the delivery roon. My child delivered unlike others very fast I was at 9 cm and 20 min later she was born. And although I know they pushed my legs back and I knew she was stuck cause the said stop and that she had muconium and i knew something was wrong and I screamed - then she was out. So will they tear me apart in the lawsuit - how will a case progress if even i don't know how she was hurt?

[CW1992]

I remember sometimes questioning myself on if the doctor was at fault. What made it clear to me was that so many of the red flags for delivering the baby were there way before the doctor had me deliver vaginally. While pregnant did you have any of the risk factors for shoulder dystocia? Did the doctor tell you that your baby was going to be big, was she overdue, are you short in stature, had you gained more than 35 lbs during pregnancy? Did the doctor take sonograms to determine the size of the baby to make sure she'd be OK during deliver? Were there signs during your pregnancy that the doctor didn't pay attention to but should have? With being unsure yourself about what happened - at least now you will get some answers. Good luck to you.

[Kathleen]

The doctor who delivered your baby was in charge of your medical care. It was up to him to make a professional medical decision on the best course to take. He had the obligation to assess your health, size, weight and the baby's position and do any or all of the proper maneuvers to delivery your baby safely. He was the one in charge in the delivery room... and he should have spoken to you about any problems...
I am an adult and I am OBPI and I was born 62 years ago and even then they knew what to do in case of large babies... I always knew I had Erb's Palsy and that the doctor pulled too hard and damaged my nerves...
Please request copies of your birthing records...

How is your baby doing? Congratulations on having a beautiful baby...
Kath

[marymom]

I think you are wise to question yourself. In my opinion, not all cases of erbs were the attending care provider's fault...I believe that some cases are hard to call ahead of time- however, I have heard some cases also where there seems to be severe fault so- I also think that mothers everywhere should reasses the control they give away when giving care providers as much responsibility that they do.

[Kathleen]

MaryMom

I could not agree more about Mother's giving away control on the matter of their birthing health...However, many choose physicians thinking that they are specialist and are well trained on the many procedures necessary to deliver a baby... Most people not involved like you with birthing... assume that when they hire a professional that person they hire is totally prepared for all of the possibilities.

I am OBPI and I assumed that the doctors I choose would do whatever they could to prevent my children from being injured... my first child at only 8lbs. 3oz. was in big trouble... I only gained 13 lbs and was very tiny... but My ob/gyn knew what to do even with out the red flags for SD so he invited the staff to watch the delivery and apologized to me for invading my privacy. He said it was important for them to watch and learn because it was rare to have to do what he did!!!


My friend is a Bradley(sp) birth instructor and she said almost the same exact words you did this week while walking.. needless to say I could not disagree more... You would have loved our chat! She is involved with birthing proceedures and knows how to squat etc and what to expect! the average woman does not, most of us were involved with our own profession.... She was my daughters birthing instructor.. so I truly value her opinions… and my daughter is a BSN and had no choice but to go with her… LOL… And her husband is the first Chiropracter I ever allowed to adjust me!

She was not aware of the present stats on SD and injury and as a result not instructing her students ask the questions of their doctor... "What would they do in case of SD" And you know how anti drug Bradley is !!! no epidural etc...
She will now!!! LOL... good thing she loves me!!! I gave her a big ear full about what mothers do not know to ask... again those involved professionally will know what to do or ask... those who are artists or painters will assume the doctor knows what to do...human nature.. its trust...


It is not up to the mother to teach the doctor how to deliver... It is up to the doctors to know the proper procedures

Just looking at this injury in hindsight... a lifetime to study the effects of one mans mistake...

When I was born they already knew the red flags and also the proper maneuvers... My mother choose OBGYN as a specialist because she wanted the best... All the warning signs were there for the doctor at my delivery and they knew what they were way back then. and C-Section was the protocol with all of the red flags at that time!!!! but the choice he made was wrong and in my opinion careless. he never even told her what he did. He managed to hide it from her for her two week stay in the hospital. But he did do a cardiograph on me and that was rare 62 years ago hmmmmm wonder why. Wonder what he knew and did not share.

[CW1992]

I definitely assumed the doctor I chose would and should know how to deliver my baby unharmed. After graduating from college with a degree that had nothing medical about it I worked full time until my daughter was born. I chose a very experienced Dr and put all of my trust in him. He was the one who went through medical school and would know what was best for me and my baby - our first born. I had never heard of brachial plexus palsy until the day my daughter was born. NOW I know that I had so many warning signs then for having a difficult delivery. My doctor ignored them. I didn't question him because I didn't know what questions to ask him - I just did exactly as he told me to do throughout the entire pregnancy. I'm 5'3", wiegh around 135 and had gained over 50 lbs and had a 10 lb 3oz baby. (not gest diabetes) The doctor was supposed to be the expert - not me. I trusted his knowledge.

[marymom]

EXACTLY
we totally agree
this subject matter fits in so well with my desire to spread birthing awareness and responsibility around a bit more to the moms side...
I think the easiest way to avoid being a victim is to takke responsibility- and the only way to do that is if you know how,
we totally agree!

[Kathleen]

Marymom

I think it would be great if young women were educated as part of the school health education programs about the many issues pertaining to birth... and such a course should include instructions about being in charge of their medical informaton

I think most responsible people choose doctors carefuly but are ill informed as to the problems that can occur... I know I asked every doctor almost all of my adult child bearing years if my children were in danger of having Erb's Palsy and everyone of them said a very firm and confident NO I believed them and I was very fearful about it... I did not have any red flags but did have large babies...with very small weight gains and I was encouraged to keep smoking to keep the babies weight down... to only 9lbs.

I truly believe that young woman are not given the proper education on birthing proceedures... But I also feel that the doctors are not for some reason being taught the red flags and the manuvers... Now where do we start to get this to go forward and educate young woman...
Check you local school see what they are teaching about the womans reproductive system...
Kath

[CW1992]

What a great discussion. I too believe that women need to be better informed of their medical treatment but I strongly believe that it is the doctors DUTY to know how to safely deliver the baby under all circumstances. I wish I would have been more knowledgable but the doctor should have been better educated. That is why I chose to go to a Doctor and not have the baby at home by myself!! He went to school for this - not me. Are doctors required to attend seminars or take tests regarding new findings? Are they required to keep their knowledge up to date? Even if I would have asked the appropriate questions and gotten what I felt were good answers regarding what to do if the baby were to become stuck - I would not have been in the position to do much to help myself during the birth. I could not have forced my doctor to do a c-section on me if he felt it was not needed. Wonder if the doctor had told me he WOULD do a c-section if needed and then during delivery he thought it wasn't necessary. Sometimes different birthing positions do not work either. I would have been pretty helpless again. Informing Mother's to be about possible problems and what to ask their doctors is a good idea to help weed through a few doctors that you for sure wouldn't want but it always comes down to the doctor's knowledge. Responsibility falls on the person who is educated/trained to deliver babies, not the mother to be. Even if a woman would know all of the right questions to ask her doctor she still is counting on the doctor to know what to do and what is best or she would not have chosen to go to a doctor in the first place. I do not think that educating women of the possible risks is nearly as important as educating those that deliver the babies.

[Kathleen]

Christy

That is so true... I had my daughter ask all the right questions but in large practices they are not always sure who is going to be on duty... Lucky for us the ob/gyn when asked about SD said he had checked her charts (she has had 3 very large babies) and did not have SD involved with any of her births. He told her everything he would do to deliver the baby should that occur and he never had to check his text book... He also spoke to me and told me why he would not induce her when she was late he did not want a rapid delivery and said he would go to C-Section if need be... He must have seen the fear in my face.

I think woman need to be more assertive when it comes to our medical health in general.

I agree it is the DOCTORS responsibility and duty to be prepared that is why we call them specialists.