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Just found out that a woman I delivered last year is sueing the for a traumatic delivery!!!
Never mind the fact that her baby lived and is ABSLOUTELY fine now, thanks to the exceptional response of everyone involved.
Never mind the fact she went on to have yet another healthy baby earlier on this year.
Never mind the fact that no one could have predicted the outcome of her labour and delivery, so how can anyone be held responsible??
This litigation culture is out of hand now. As much as I love my job I'm once again wondering if I should quit this profession while I'm still ahead. The realisation that every delivery I carry out could come back to haunt me is depressing.
:grouphug:
Get them to sign a waiver before you deliver next time - right about the time they are screaming. ;)
It's hard not to take these claims personally - but you mustn't. You must content yourself with the fact that you did a good job.
Jester666
04-10-07, 08:45 AM
Got to blame our friends over the water for the "sue for everthing" culture here. (No offence intended to our American Members).
It's all gone mad!!
You can get sued for giving CPR to a heart attack victim in the street if you dont manage to keep the victim alive!! Madness.
My sister had complications before her birth and the midwife told her to go home and have a curry and a walk and come back the next day. It turned out the cord was wrapped around her sons neck starving him of oxygen and she was rushed in, in the middle of the night for an emergency op.
He was born 2 months premature very very ill because of this resulting various illnesses. He then had to have a button installed so he could feed through his belly for the rest of his life, the QMC in nottingham bodged this basic surgery 4 times resulting in internal bleeding to his stomach which he then coughed up in his sleep and drowned on his own blood.
Yet no one can be held accountable...........
Therfore I'm sure you will be fine.
Speedy Claire
04-10-07, 08:55 AM
I`m in a similar profession and i`m sick to death of the threat of litigation... its trebled my paperwork and thats valuable time taken away from the hands on nursing which I love. Not many people even realise that as health care professionals we actually have to pay a subscription each year for the "priviledge" of being a nurse/midwife??? How many other professions have to pay?
I had a similar experience about 7 years ago when the family of a man I resuscitated tried to sue me for breaking 2 of his ribs... never mind the fact they got their dad back and he`s still alive to this day!! My local paper published an article on what the family were intending to do and due to the outcry they soon backed down.
Right off my soap box now lol..... I agree with you 100% and hopefully their claim will go nowhere. 10 years ago my son died whilst I was in labour... as you say nobody could`ve predicted the outcome and I actually felt so sorry for the midwives and the whole team who tried everything in their power to save him and were genuinely distressed. I owed them gratitude for their attempts not jumping on the next bus and hot footing it to one of these new breed of "No win , no fee" cowboy solicitors!!
Very best of luck, i know its a worry for you but i`m sure common sense will prevail
So who do I have to sue for the trauma's I suffered AFTER the birth and for all the years it took for them to finally leave home? :D
This is insanity, Melody. The baby lived, end of. No case to answer I would have thought.
And can we really blame the US for this...............shouldn't we blame our own legal profession for allowing this crap to happen?
Warthog
04-10-07, 09:02 AM
This really annoys me. Hope you don't get too much hassle from this. I can't beleive the blame culture of today! :(
Alpinestarhero
04-10-07, 09:09 AM
With any luck, the jury will find the case stupid and tell the lady to grow up, and / or get a job if she wants money.
My sister in law is due any week now...I'm hoping that the birth will go well (I'm sure it will). Midwives and doctors and nurses do a bloody brilliant job and are fantastic at solving problems on the spot without any hesitation. This woman should be thankfull for the quick-thinking actions of those staff who managed to save her and her baby.
Anyway, was she expecting childbirth to be hassle free?!
Matt
Alpinestarhero
04-10-07, 09:11 AM
So who do I have to sue for the trauma's I suffered AFTER the birth and for all the years it took for them to finally leave home? :D
You make your kids buy you loads of stuff and make them do everything for you that you had to do for them
:D
Matt
Pedro68
04-10-07, 09:20 AM
You make your kids buy you loads of stuff and make them do everything for you that you had to do for them
:D
Matt
+1
As a parent, you start by wiping the dribble from your babies mouths and changing their nappies, and excusing the fact that they've sh*t themselves because they are too young to know any better ... and as a parent, I'll be expecting my kids to be wiping the dribble from my mouth, changing my catheter, and excusing the fact that I've sh*t myself because my sphincter is too weak for my brain to control anymore :rolleyes: ... eventually ... unless I decide to go out in a blaze of glory at the ripe old age of [whatever] but JUST before all my faculties go ... and JUST before my licence expires (again) :D LMAO
EDIT: Oh yeah and Mel, if justice prevails (which I'm sure it will) then this case (and the plaintif) will be thrown out of court instantly! ;-)
Biker Biggles
04-10-07, 10:36 AM
Good post Melody.You have just demonstrated in a few lines what is wrong with our public services.At grass roots level the staff are so hacked off with the blame culture that large numbers want out of the job.These are people who are good at their jobs and often have many years experience,but who have had it all knocked out of them by incidents (either personal or to their colleagues) like you describe.
In the type of work I am involved with things have got so bad that many staff have second jobs just in case they lose their main one,and the "When your number comes up go quietly"mentality has corroded the workplace morale to ratdoes.
slark01
04-10-07, 10:51 AM
My daughter was born early due to problems, thanks to the midwives ( not the doctors! )spotting the problem and immediately responding, the baby and my wife are healthy. In your case Melody that woman needs a good slap aross the back of the head with a frying pan!
Thank you for doing a very difficult job, I hope nothing comes of it.
Gazza77
04-10-07, 10:52 AM
Not many people even realise that as health care professionals we actually have to pay a subscription each year for the "priviledge" of being a nurse/midwife??? How many other professions have to pay?
I wouldn't have realised, but then again most professionally qualified people have to pay to retain their qualification. You're not alone. :(
Biker Biggles
04-10-07, 11:01 AM
Yes most professionals do have to pay subs to a regulatory body in order to be registered to practice.This applies even to those directly employed such as nurses by a hospital trust and is a curious throwback to the old otherwise illegal closed shop of the 1970s.
To work here you must be a paid up member of this body or you are out of work.If you misbehave in any way that this body doesnt like you will be expelled and automatically dismissed from your job and not allowed to work.
Now I think the old closed shop was an evil system and getting rid of it is one of the few things I respect Thatcher for,but this current registration system run by a self perpetuating oligarchy is just as bad.
i cant belive that today people are prepared to sue for having ribs broken during CPR etc, FFS do they not realise that giving CPR involves breaking the chest bone and maybe ribs, its not like F***ing TV where they just bounce on your chest. If you are revived via CPR you will be FUBAR.
I might sue all those naughty Iraqi's who mortared us and shot t the base when i was ther, it caused me trauma!!
people just need to get a life FFS, i would rather have a few broken ribs that will heal and be alive. I would only be greatful to whoever revived me.
I`m in a similar profession and i`m sick to death of the threat of litigation... its trebled my paperwork and thats valuable time taken away from the hands on nursing which I love.
You do your absolute best for someone and yet they insist on finding fault.
It sucks! (for want of a better term)
Anyway, was she expecting childbirth to be hassle free?!
Matt
Yes.
Women's expectations are too high and a large number do not expect to feel ANY pain at all during labour.
When they do, someone's got to be held responsible.
We once had a morbidly obese woman deliver in our unit. We had to order a special bed for her because she wouldn't fit on any of the regular ones. As you can imagine, getting an epidural to work on her was an absolute nightmare.
She ended up with an emergency Caesarean section, which was a MAJOR risk because she had to have a general anaesthetic.
She tried to sue for an ineffective epidural and the pain and suffering and that she wasn't warned that being obese would complicate her delivery!!
Fizzy Fish
04-10-07, 11:07 AM
OMG that's insane!
hope it all works out ok for you melody
Warthog
04-10-07, 11:07 AM
I might sue all those naughty Iraqi's who mortared us and shot t the base when i was ther, it caused me trauma!!
Surely they had filled out the correct risk assesments for the mortar firing, and had several health and safety visits whilst shooting at you?! :shock:
Alpinestarhero
04-10-07, 11:08 AM
Sigh...
Some poeple are just really really thick :( being obese complicates everything, surely?
Matt
Surely they had filled out the correct risk assesments for the mortar firing, and had several health and safety visits whilst shooting at you?! :shock:
you know i dont think they did!! Their health normally got a bit worse for wear if they were seen. A .50 Caliber machine gun from the reaction force sent out usually stung a bit!!
You do your absolute best for someone and yet they insist on finding fault.
It sucks! (for want of a better term)
Women's expectations are too high and a large number do not expect to feel ANY pain at all during labour.
When they do, someone's got to be held responsible.
We once had a morbidly obese woman deliver in our unit. We had to order a special bed for her because she wouldn't fit on any of the regular ones. As you can imagine, getting an epidural to work on her was an absolute nightmare.
She ended up with an emergency Caesarean section, which was a MAJOR risk because she had to have a general anaesthetic.
She tried to sue for an ineffective epidural and the pain and suffering and that she wasn't warned that being obese would complicate her delivery!!
Well, having had an epidural but normal delivery with my first, a totally pain- relief free second delivery because it was so fast no-one had time to give me anything, and an emergency epidural section with my third I think I've pretty much run the array of deliveries, and I have nothing for the utmost respect for midwives. They put up with my swearing, terrible jokes and demands for a cigarette with good humour and even the one I kicked didn't hold a grudge, she just thought it was funny.
Please, Melody, don't let this make you give up a job I'm sure you love and are brilliant at!
ArtyLady
04-10-07, 11:17 AM
Sorry to hear about this Melody - some people honestly! Giving birth is painful and traumatic - and thats a fact! both mine were but I didtn blame anyone :confused: she must be a bit dim :rolleyes:
Please, Melody, don't let this make you give up a job I'm sure you love and are brilliant at!
I really do love my job as do all the midwives I know. But morale is very low at the moment and many are leaving.
In fact, tonight I am going out for a meal with the girls from work. It's a 'leaving do' for one of the midwives, who's decided it's not worth the hassle and has packed it in.
I really do love my job as do all the midwives I know. But morale is very low at the moment and many are leaving.
In fact, tonight I am going out for a meal with the girls from work. It's a 'leaving do' for one of the midwives, who's decided it's not worth the hassle and has packed it in.
Now that really is very sad, and very depressing. :(
Bluepete
04-10-07, 11:29 AM
Reminds me of the brilliant Billy Connolly sketch about fat people complaining that they weren't fat, they were "retaining water". To which he replied,
"You're not retaining water, you're retaining CHIPS"
Makes me cry with laughter nearly as much as stupid litigation claims. Have a look at this (http://www.power-of-attorneys.com/stupid_lawsuit_collection.asp?wacky=0) I found on Google, some of it makes you wonder, it really does!
she didn't have to rely on somebody else she could have had a home birth what was the problem Melody, could it be just another chav trying to get money for nothing?
she didn't have to rely on somebody else she could have had a home birth what was the problem Melody, could it be just another chav trying to get money for nothing?
Without giving too much detail, in a nutshell, this woman's pregnancy, labour and delivery was pretty straight forward till the baby's head was delivered and the shoulders got stuck.
This is known as shoulder dystocia and is an obstetric emergency for which we are all trained. Within SECONDS, the emergency drill was put in place, and like I said earlier, the baby is alive and well and so is mum.
Luckypants
04-10-07, 12:30 PM
Hunni I'm sure you got nothing to worry about. This woman is being a bit of a tool,
Try not to take it personally. It's difficult I know when you have responded correctly in an emergency situation, done a good job and got a good outcome. Someone is trying it on and will be put right, I'm sure.
:grouphug:
Pedro68
04-10-07, 12:43 PM
Mel, if you meet this woman again, then please ask her if this is her first child.
If she says "No" then look absolutely shocked and surprised.
When she asks "Why are you so surprised?"
Simply say, "I'm surprised someone would f*ck you TWICE" ;-)
ok, ok, so that was actually adapted from another joke, but I hope it cheered ya up a little :D
Reminds me of when I did a first aid course with St Johns a few years back and being told that if someone is injured by you in the course of the treatment but actually lives as a result of your actions you could still be sued anyway for causing an injury, make you wonder if its worth it. Still keep you chin up Mel, no not that one, not that one either, ah there you go ;)
what you saying ya cheeky bugger that Mels got three chins, johnny vegas springs to mind
Still keep you chin up Mel, no not that one, not that one either, ah there you go ;)
Right, I'm off to start getting ready for my night out with the girls.
My three chins will need a lot of heavy, industrial strength make up.:smt090
;)
Right, I'm off to start getting ready for my night out with the girls.
My three chins will need a lot of heavy, industrial strength make up.:smt090
;)
Nah you,re a stunner mate ;) have a good nite :rave:
My sister had complications before her birth and the midwife told her to go home and have a curry and a walk and come back the next day. It turned out the cord was wrapped around her sons neck starving him of oxygen and she was rushed in, in the middle of the night for an emergency op.
He was born 2 months premature very very ill because of this resulting various illnesses. He then had to have a button installed so he could feed through his belly for the rest of his life, the QMC in nottingham bodged this basic surgery 4 times resulting in internal bleeding to his stomach which he then coughed up in his sleep and drowned on his own blood.
Yet no one can be held accountable...........
Therfore I'm sure you will be fine.
Very sorry to hear.
Very sorry to hear.
Cheers, it was a truely hard time. Where people were genuinly to blame due to incompetence.............unlike poor melody's case where the women is clearly a complete idiot, did she expect to lie back and it to just pop out. if she wanted that she should have taken the Posh spice approach to child birth and paid for a c-section in a swanky private hospital.
RingDing
04-10-07, 06:09 PM
As a father of a nine week old my wifes labour is still etched in my memory. In fact I don't think it will ever go away! Her's was a long but incident free labour and that was traumatic but, as has been said, what do you expect. It's giving birth, not going for a number 2!
As for paying to be a professional, I do too as an electronic engineer. If we don't pay a regulatory organisation to check who is really qualified to be called a professional then anybody could claim it. In the case of healthcare I would have thought this is very important. However, if it is a requirement for the job, which it should be IMO, then it would be nice to see the employer going at least part way to cover the cost.
Hope the silly woman comes to her senses. Good luck Melody.
Speedy Claire
04-10-07, 06:56 PM
Am amazed that others have to pay for their professional registration too!!!! It annoys me immensely cos whilst I agree that as in certain professions such as nursing and midwifery there needs to be some sort of regulatory body I strongly feel our employers should contribute towards the cost.
fizzwheel
04-10-07, 08:41 PM
Never mind the fact that her baby lived and is ABSLOUTELY fine now, thanks to the exceptional response of everyone involved.
This really irritates me. She should be pleased that she had her baby and that the baby is happy and healthy. My brother and his wife lost their baby daughter in January, she was born very very prematurely and only lived for 10 days and then passed away. The nursing staff were amazing and they couldnt do enough for Emma or my brother and his wife.
To try and take somebody to court for this kind of thing rips the p*ss. Stupid Americanised blame culture we live in now. Somebody wants to go round that womans house and talk some sense into her and give her a good slap round the face and tell her to be thankful for what she has, it can get taken away so quickly.
graemepaterson - I'm sorry to read about your Sister, that sounds a terrible thing to have happened.
Am amazed that others have to pay for their professional registration too!!!!
Nearlly every proffesion has a regulatory institution. In the Construction industry which i specialise in there is easily 20+ for all manner of different things.
You get business cards with 10+ characters at the end of peoples names and just think what a ****. I'm a member of 2 professional institutions but luckily my employers pays for them as together they come to over £300+ a year.
......Within SECONDS, the emergency drill was put in place, ........
now that sounds painful, but you've got to hand it to Black&Decker, a tool for every job.
now that sounds painful, but you've got to hand it to Black&Decker, a tool for every job.
lol
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