Legal Briefing: Unwanted Cesareans and Obstetric Violence
In my latest legal briefing for the Journal of Clinical Ethics, I discuss "Legal Briefing: Unwanted Cesareans and Obstetric Violence."
A capacitated pregnant woman has a nearly unqualified right to refuse a cesarean section. Her right to say “no” takes precedence over clinicians’ preferences and even over clinicians’ concerns about fetal health. Leading medical societies, human rights organizations, and appellate courts have all endorsed this principle. Nevertheless, clinicians continue to limit reproductive liberty by forcing and coercing women to have unwanted cesareans. This “Legal Briefing...
Source: blog.bioethics.net - June 12, 2017 Category: Medical Ethics Authors: Thaddeus Mason Pope, JD, PhD Tags: Health Care syndicated Source Type: blogs
A physician broke down walls, or so she thought
I woke up at 6 a.m. to my daughter’s annoyingly, loud alarm. Since I was on call, my first reflex was to look at my iPad to see if I had patients in labor. I am part of an 11 doctor call group, so when I am on call, I cover all the patients of those doctors that come into the hospital. I scrolled through the patient list and saw three on “the board,” listing the laboring patients in our group. It looked like I didn’t need to rush in, so I hung out with my two high schoolers until they left, put on my scrubs and left the house with coffee in hand as well as everything I would need to stay at the hospital for 24 hour...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - May 25, 2017 Category: General Medicine Authors: < a href="http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/post-author/andrea-eisenberg" rel="tag" > Andrea Eisenberg, MD < /a > Tags: Physician OB/GYN Source Type: blogs
Having access to health care saved this patient ’s life
Now more than ever, health insurance is a staple story in the 24-hour news cycle. Opinions vary widely on the issue, as do politician’s thoughts on the matter. Debates rage, tensions grow, and deeper divides are formed as our government wrestles with this colossal dispute. Nestled at the heart of it all though is a basic question:
Is health insurance a right or a privilege in the United States?
I’m alive today because my school district, where I’ve now taught for 20 years, offers the “Cadillac” of insurance plans. On April 26, 2006, I checked into the hospital for a scheduled C-section. Due to scleroderma...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - May 16, 2017 Category: General Medicine Authors: < a href="http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/post-author/lisa-goodman-helfand" rel="tag" > Lisa Goodman-Helfand < /a > Tags: Patient Patients Source Type: blogs
Home births sometimes make sense for health insurers
I sat in my car, anxiously watching the minutes tick by as I ruminated over and over the words, I had prepared for this crucial meeting. I had arrived much earlier than the appointed time, knowing I would need a few moments to calm my nerves before walking into a room to face a panel of eight legal, medical, and insurance professionals.
I was pregnant with my sixth baby and was seeking to have an out-of-hospital birth under the care of licensed and professional midwives in my home state of Wisconsin — just as I’d given birth to my last baby. Due to having a history of multiple prior cesarean births, if I were to gi...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - May 10, 2017 Category: General Medicine Authors: < a href="http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/post-author/rachelle-hansen" rel="tag" > Rachelle Hansen < /a > Tags: Patient OB/GYN Source Type: blogs
First Kicks by Dr. Greene: Track Your Baby s Development During Pregnancy, by Week
Sign-up here for a set of week-by-week newsletters so you can follow your baby’s development from now until the beautiful moment of birth.
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Source: Conversations with Dr Greene - May 2, 2017 Category: Child Development Authors: DrGreene Team Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: blogs
First Kicks by Dr. Greene: Track Your Baby ’ s Development During Pregnancy, by Week
Sign-up here for a set of week-by-week newsletters so you can follow your baby’s development from now until the beautiful moment of birth.
Get Dr. Greene's Pregnancy Newsletter
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Source: Conversations with Dr Greene - May 2, 2017 Category: Child Development Authors: DrGreene Team Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: blogs
Hospitals should quit alienating pregnant health care consumers
When Barbara (name changed) recently underwent her fourth Cesarean section, she was appalled by the care she received during her recovery. Her catheter overflowed, and a CNA asked her to check her own incision. When the CNA asked if she was breastfeeding her baby, Barbara replied tearfully that she couldn’t lift her out the bassinette. Rooming-in is a great idea. Unless you’ve had a 36-hour labor or major abdominal surgery.
Pregnant women are vital health care consumers as they usually have a partner and one or more children who will presumably be accessing care in the future. However, many pregnant women still e...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - March 21, 2017 Category: Journals (General) Authors: < a href="http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/post-author/poppy-daniels" rel="tag" > Poppy Daniels, MD < /a > Tags: Physician Hospital OB/GYN Source Type: blogs
Childbirth in the U.S. and India: How it falls short and why
After eight years of practicing obstetrics and researching childbirth in the United States, I know as well as anyone that the American maternal health system could be better. Our way of childbirth is the costliest in the world. Our health outcomes, from mortality rates to birth weights, are far, far from the best.
The reasons we fall short are not obvious. In medicine, providing more care is often mistaken for providing better care. In childbirth the relationship between more and better is complicated. Texan obstetricians, when compared to their counterparts in neighboring New Mexico, are 50% more likely to intervene on t...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - March 19, 2017 Category: Journals (General) Authors: < a href="http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/post-author/neel-shah" rel="tag" > Neel Shah, MD < /a > Tags: Physician OB/GYN Source Type: blogs
A harrowing C-section, performed on a close friend
We chat about the day, as I use a sharp knife to cut into her. We joke about my kids, as the blood is spurting. We reminisce about our friendship, as I rip open her tissue.
For most surgeons, their patients are asleep as they perform their surgery. In obstetrics, however, we want our patients awake, not only to witness their baby’s arrival, but also because it is safer. When I step back, it is a surreal moment, to be inside someone’s body while also talking with them. It is particularly challenging when it is one of your closest friends, and it is one of the hardest deliveries you have ever performed.
When she ...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - January 5, 2017 Category: Journals (General) Authors: < a href="http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/post-author/andrea-eisenberg" rel="tag" > Andrea Eisenberg, MD < /a > Tags: Conditions OB/GYN Source Type: blogs
Is Physician Spending Linked to Malpractice Claims?
A 2015 study is coming back to the forefront with a new interview by Dr. Anupam Jena. Dr. Jena authored the 2015 study, Physician spending and subsequent risks of malpractice claims: an observational study. The study attempted to answer the question: is a higher use of resources by physicians associated with a reduced risk of malpractice claims, finding that “across specialties, greater average spending by physicians was associated with reduced risk of incurring a malpractice claim.”
The Study
Jena and the other researchers matched the spending of 25,000 Florida physicians in 2000-2009 to their malpractice claims. In...
Source: Policy and Medicine - November 8, 2016 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
These Scope of Practice Laws Don ’t Improve Health Outcomes, Serve Mainly as Barriers to Entry
Scope of practice (SOP) restrictions in health care professions are often portrayed as a necessary intervention to protect consumer health and safety. Given how common this argument is, there have been surprisingly few studies trying to determine whether SOP restrictions actually have any impact on such outcomes. A newworking paper seeks to fill this gap in the literature by determining whether SOP laws for certified nurse midwives (CNMs) affect health outcomes. On average, it turns out that the restrictions do not have a significant impact on maternal behaviors or infant health outcomes. Instead, they “primarily serve a...
Source: Cato-at-liberty - November 2, 2016 Category: American Health Authors: Charles Hughes Source Type: blogs
True Story: One Father ’ s Struggle with Postpartum Depression
Dads get the “baby blues” too.
People might not realize this, but, after the birth of a child, both women and men can encounter symptoms of postpartum depression. I’m speaking from experience here.
After the birth of my daughter, which endures as one of the happiest moments of my life, I found myself struggling with unexpected waves of anxiety, fear, and depression.
It was horrible, and what made it worse, was that I was very uncomfortable talking about it.
8 Heartbreaking Secrets ALL Men Keep From The Women They Love
Here’s why — don’t you hate it when a couple says “we’re pregnant”?
I do. Because the d...
Source: World of Psychology - October 31, 2016 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Psych Central Staff Tags: Depression Disorders Family Men's Issues Parenting Personal Publishers YourTango anxiety Baby Blues birth Child Emotions Father Fatherhood Fear panic postpartum depression Pregnancy Tom Burns Wife women Source Type: blogs
3 Ways to Navigate the Emotional Side of Pregnancy
Pregnancy is a beautiful and miraculous time. You’re growing a baby for goodness’ sake. And for many moms-to-be, it’s also a tough time. There are the physical symptoms—marathon-level fatigue, nausea, heartburn, appetite loss—which ensure that you don’t feel like yourself. The days might be limping by, and all you want to do is spend hours on the couch, vegging out.
There also are the emotional symptoms. You might be feeling overwhelmed, anxious, frustrated and sad—all in one day or all in one hour. It can feel like 500 different concerns are running through your mind (and heart). There are just so many unkno...
Source: World of Psychology - October 5, 2016 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Margarita Tartakovsky, M.S. Tags: Books General Habits Health-related Mental Health and Wellness Self-Help Stress Women's Issues anxiety Calm Discomfort Emotional Health Emotions Guilt mindful walking Mindfulness Mood Swings Personal Needs Pregnancy P Source Type: blogs
