Sigh. Most of you know that I am pregnant and counting down the days (20 now to be exact) until my scheduled C-Section. I honestly hope I can make it that far, I really do. We're scheduled to deliver on Friday, August 24th and that would be fabulous, since my husband has another week of Vacation coming up starting that Monday. So we're crossing our fingers that I will make it. But my previous delivery history tells us that we won't.
According to ultrasound we are exactly 36 weeks and two days today. According to LMP (ladies and some men, you know what this is) I am thirty nine weeks and two days. They say ultrasound is the most valid means of predicting your due date, but I don't know. I gave birth to my first son at 36 weeks (according to Ultrasound) and he weighed seven pounds and three ounces, didn't need a single day in the NICU, although he was considered premature, and didn't need any additional sustenance due to my gestational diabetes. He was the picture of health. I delivered B at 37 weeks, and it was the same story. However, 37 weeks is considered term. Anyway, let me get to the point of this whole blog.
Friday night I was having some extreme pelvic pressure, accompanied by some contractions. I lay in bed twisting the head off of my daughter's Build-A-Bear, Maggie, hoping that if I actually tore her apart that I could sew her back together enough to make her look like an actual bear - with an actual bear head. I woke Dan up and told him I was going to drive to the hospital, just to get checked out. It was the middle of the night, so someone had to stay here with B. I wanted to make sure that the contractions weren't causing me to dilate at any alarming rate. I have to have a repeat C-section due to the C-section I had previously with B- due to a pelvic fracture from a previous accident that will really never heal. If there's one thing I don't want, I don't want to be unable to walk for several weeks due to a re-broken pelvis. After all, I have a toddler, and I am going to have a newborn. I called the doctor and waited for him to call me back, but I never got an answer. My doctor is on vacation so I'm having to deal with his partners at this point. At this point the contractions were at the stage that I was having to actually breathe through them. I've been through this rodeo three times. I know what Braxton Hicks are, and if these were my 'practice' contractions, man, they were really trying to get me in good shape. (Ha,Ha) Anyway, according to my doctor, there are no such things as "False" contractions. Just contractions. But, as I said, he is on vacation. I decided to go on in and get checked out, just to be on the safe side.
I arrived at the hospital, in obvious pain. Asked for directions to the labor hall, although I should really know by now. No one offers me any assistance to make it up there. I DO make it up there, however, sit down and register, even though I am obviously not feeling well, I manage to get the paperwork sign and basically throw my insurance card at the lady behind the desk. They usher me back into a room and put a monitor on me. A nurse comes in and tells me to put a gown on, then disappears. Another nurse comes in, and doesn't say two words to me, just gets me in the bed and straps me to a monitor. The previous nurse comes in and the mute nurse asks her to check me. She has me scoot down and does so, saying that I was dilated a fingertip and my cervix was thinned, but closed. Um... Hey, I am over here, how about you tell me that?!
The nurse who doesn't really want to talk to me is left alone to adjust the monitor on my belly, and she informs me that they've had a rash of twins tonight. She asks me if I am having twins. I said No, I am not, and thought... "And your name is?" ...
She tells me they are going to monitor me for a while and then leaves. Now, I am in here all by myself. I am scared, to say the least, although I don't know why. I've been through all of this before. Their attitudes have made me feel as if I am in the way, that they were too busy to deal with me and my silly inclination that something MIGHT be happening from these contractions. I've also been experience nausea and pelvic pressure and just in general, feeling horrible.
The mute nurse comes back in after severeal moments and asks me a whole list of questions. She goes through them as fast as she can and then she gets up to readjust my monitor and asks me if the baby was breech the last time. At this point the other nurse is in there looking at the monitor and I inform mute nurse that, No, the current baby is curved around - thinking that is why she is asking if the previous baby was breech, because she can't get a trace on little G's heartbeat. The other nurse says "I thought you had a C-section because of a pelvic fracture' -
  I did. What, you think I am lying to you? I told the other nurse that G is curved around so she can find his freaking heartbeat.. and I tell her so. They leave and I start to cry. I really wish I had Dan with me at this point. It shouldn't be the case, but it really is true that they treat you better when you have someone else with you- in particular, a man.
Continued On First Comment!
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| Physicians, Healthcare, & Predjudice |
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MonkeyWoman29
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Aug 5 @ 11:54AM
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I guess some people don't understand that Dan and I like to take care of our own responsibilities, and didn't want to call his mother out at midnight to come to our house and tend to B. who was fast asleep.
After a few minutes both nurses leave and the doctor comes in, informs me that my contractions aren't doing anything to my cervix, offers me a sleeping pill (which I decline, I am driving and I will barely take a tylenol unless the pain is intense) and sends in another nurse with discharge papers.
They diagnosed me as being pregnant.
No kidding. Today I am feeling just as bad, as I did Friday, as I did yesterday, but at least Dan took B swimming yesterday and let me rest. I'd call the doctor but I'd be afraid he'd ask me to go into the labor hall again or blow me off. I think it's pitiful that I am afraid to seek out medical care because of a couple of nurses & doctors who have bad attitudes. I was informed that if I ever had any questions or ever had any doubts I should call or come in. Now I find that is not the case. Now I find I should only come at their convenience, and I'd better bring my husband if I want to be treated with any kind of decency.
If I didn't have to have a C-Section, I'd switch at this point and go to a birthing center. They always seem to be so respectful of everyone there.
I hate Hospitals.
Regards,
Kris
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sciurusniger
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Aug 5 @ 12:29PM
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Gosh, what a mess....
You might call on Monday and ask to speak to the department head, the doctor in charge, and let him know about your experience. It might be that something Really Bad happened there before your arrival and the staff was still shook up. Not like that's a good excuse, but it might explain a "single instance"?
Anyway, if no one ever says anything, nothing will ever get fixed. You and anyone else certainly deserve to be treated a little more kindly.
Sure hope the rest of this goes smoothly for you. Will keep fingers crossed....
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babydoll6
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Aug 5 @ 1:10PM
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Sorry to hear about your very scary experience. Some people in the medical field have no sense of compassion. I had a rough time with my son and had a few of those "inconsiderate" nurses. I just got where I would be hateful right back and I would report them to the head of staff. Best of luck and don't be afraid to seek out medical help just because of the jerks!
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Injuneer
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Aug 5 @ 1:15PM
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Sadly, as we have discovered in my own home town, the number of people that enter the medical profession do so for the money, certainly not the compassion. Unfortunately it often requires one to use a bit of "childish phycology" on them to get what you want. I usually introduce myself as Mr. "name", trial lawyer; after which the level of service seems to improve. Not sure why, but I'm gratefull for small favors!
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Chickapea
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Aug 5 @ 1:20PM
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Unfortionately in this day there are so many people lacking compassion. They are overworked people who are short staffed and forget we are human beings with feelings . I recently had to go to the er for a stomach flu and the intern was so funny he made me feel better just by talking to him. He was a comic, a real trip. Sounded and acted like Richard Simmons and I wanted to bring him home with me lol. Many nurses are smug, and rude and they act as though they hate their professions. That is sad for they make it bad for the good ones , Who just love what they do. No matter how busy they are they should never lack compassion. Like the creed, { First do no harm. } They are there to comfort and help. Not make a patient feel worse then they already do.
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Wolf36
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Aug 5 @ 1:41PM
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Thank god you had an insurance card to throw at them. Otherwise they would have probably treated you in the broom closet.
I know these people are overworked but there is no excuse for treating an expectant mother or anyone else like that. The medical profession is about one thing these days and that's MONEY.
Wolf
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BandTMom
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Aug 5 @ 1:56PM
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As Sci said, call the hospital Monday and report your experience. Then follow it up with a letter.
The only way to get rid of the "less compassionate" health care workers is to report and follow up.
There are some good ones of us out there. 
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missliss78
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Aug 5 @ 2:15PM
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Oh man, you've had a rough weekend. Hope the new weeks finds you feeling better. I think Sci gave you some very sound advice here, Kris. By all means, CALL!...You never know what good may come from it.
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tazz160
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Aug 5 @ 5:10PM
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First off I'd like to aplogize on behalf of all the medical professionals who take their jobs seriously. Most of us don't enter this field because of the money; we enter it because we have a desire to help people.
Unfortunately, like other fields, we have bad apples. I work at a small hospital, and everyone is trying very hard to change perceptions and attitudes that have been around for years. Most times these perceptions were justified; there are people in this field that only care about the money. But, there are far more that love to help than those that don't. I'm sure I can speak for those of us that love our job when I say we would be very happy to get rid of every bad apple in our basket.
The change our hospital is taking centers around educating the patient. We use AIDET and if its not followed that person can be terminated. We take patient care VERY seriously. This is our way of educating the patient about ourselves, the exam, the wait and our facilty. Its a national standard that most facilities use. I've run across many people in my field that have no idea how important it is to educate the patient, and to be compassionate toward their circumstances, unless they have been a patient themselves.
I agree that you should contact administration about this. A bad patient, or a bad day doesn't justify bad treatment. We take every complaint very serious, and most times there are severe consequences. Its a hard stance to take, but everyone in healthcare has to realize we are there to take care of our patients. If that person is unable to uphold these standards then they should find another field to join.
Again, I'm sorry for your bad treatment. Just remember not all healthcare practitioners are this boneheaded.
Wes
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