Many women suffer an injury during childbirth. It’s simply impossible to proceed through childbirth without some stress on the body. The pelvis is at risk for a fracture, or the pelvic floor might lose its strength.
Most women know that some recovery time is expected, but how much is too much? In one woman’s situation, she thought that something was wrong at around six weeks after giving birth, but the doctor said everything looked healthy. Still, she was having trouble with incontinence. Sadly, she let the issue go for many years, which impacted how she worked and interacted with others. This struggle is not only a result of a patient not speaking clearly about a concern but also a failure of the medical provider to ask about this common occurrence that takes place after childbirth.
Even if weak pelvic floor muscles may appear normal at six weeks after childbirth, medical providers can often do more to pay attention to a patient’s ongoing symptoms. Mothers have much to handle after a child is born. They’re busy, they’re tired and some may struggle with postpartum depression that makes it harder for them to talk about their problems. It’s the job of a medical provider to talk to these patients about complications they should look out for. These aren’t necessarily life-threatening conditions. They might be things like pain from scarring or the potential for incontinence. These conditions still affect every aspect of a patient’s life, and there are treatment options patients should know about.
A doctor who fails to listen or act on a patient’s concerns is not only acting negligently but against the patient’s best interests. If this happens to you, know that you have rights. Your attorney can help you understand if you have a medical malpractice case.
Source: Cosmopolitan, “Millions of Women Are Injured During Childbirth. Why Aren’t Doctors Diagnosing Them?,” Laura Beil, accessed March 03, 2017
