Dr. cut himself during medical procedure

curlesw · curlesw's Garage

During my wife’s emergency cesarean, the Dr. cut himself badly as he was in a rush to get the baby out. Mom and baby are doing well, thanks to the Dr. When the dust had settled, we inquired if the Dr had been tested for HIV. We were not given a direct answer but were told “we would look into it”.

Has anyone had a similar experience or know what the law is in a situation such as this? It makes since that everyone would be tested, but it also makes since everyone should be given the results. I am frustrated at the hospital’s covert handling of this matter and I think they should be up front and fully dispose everything to all parties involved.

v/r
Wayne C.

svandamme · svandamme's Garage

"we would look into it"
means
"let's consult the lawyers before we say anything at all"

Rikao4 · 09-15-2006, 12:16 PM

Rest assured, they are also testing your wifes blood.
Rika

masraum · 09-15-2006, 12:41 PM

I'm sure there are no problems, but it's still a bit scary. Congrats on the new addition.

ruf-porsche · ruf-porsche's Garage

I normally don't condone this but

HIRE A LAWYER so that he can start the process so that no evidence is dispose of or tampered with. Since hospitals are public institution, request under the freedom of info act the blood work of the doctor that cut himself, the last time the blood work was performed the result of the blood work for infectious disease or communicable disease.

curlesw · curlesw's Garage

Quote:

Originally posted by Rikao4
Rest assured, they are also testing your wifes blood.
Rika

No doubt they they are checking my wife's blood...I am concerned about his blood since his cut hand was inside getting the baby out. I know he knows the results of my wife's blood test, why aren't they forthcoming about his?

I am going to give them a couple of days to get check into. But, seems like this would be addressed upfront, without me
having to ask.

masraum, thanks, out firsy boy.

Wayne

widgeon13 · 09-15-2006, 01:22 PM

Congrats and sorry about the issues of concern. I would approach the Dr directly in order to maintain confidentialty.

speeder · speeder's Garage

Congrats and I would say that unless the Dr. is gay, the odds are overwhelmingly in your favor. In the U.S. anyways.

cashflyer · 09-15-2006, 01:39 PM

"Couple of days to check into it" could equate to a "couple of days to cover their butt"

I've always expected that medical professionals in the surgical theater would have to be free of Hep, HIV, etc - just in case of situations such as these. But then again, I have nothing to base this on. And I'm sure there are special interest groups that would claim it to be discriminatory to exclude HIV+ persons from being surgeons.

Regardless of what they tell you, I would still obtain the actual test results that ruf mentioned. Even if you have no intentions of a lawsuit, you may just want that extra peace of mind.

dd74 · 09-15-2006, 02:08 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by cashflyer

I've always expected that medical professionals in the surgical theater would have to be free of Hep, HIV, etc - just in case of situations such as these. But then again, I have nothing to base this on. And I'm sure there are special interest groups that would claim it to be discriminatory to exclude HIV+ persons from being surgeons.

Very interesting. I wonder if being tested is left to a responsibility of the doctor. Secondly, I wonder if he or she is legally bound to offer proof of their tests.

Betcha' Moses would know. He's a healer.

Moses, Moses. Bueller...Frye...

Nathans_Dad · Nathans_Dad's Garage

We have to be tested yearly in the Air Force whether we like it or not. They will often offer free testing to physicians in the civilian sector, although I'm not sure if it is required or not.

azasadny · azasadny's Garage

I used to be a surgical technician in the USN from '82-'91 and accidents like this are fairly common, especially with emergency procedures. I'm hoping the hospital and Dr will step up and do the right thing (confirm his HIV status) ASAP.

Noah930 · Noah930's Garage

Why don't you just ask the doctor? Instead of going through other channels, ask him directly. You're going to see him again in a follow-up visit, anyway. He may have had himself tested, anyway. It's not a confrontational type thing (unless he's got something to hide). It's a reasonable question, and the OB shouldn't be offended.

Don't know what the exact laws are regarding this. It varies from state to state. In general, there usually aren't laws forcing the doctor to get tested. It's usually up to the health care provider to go seek care for something like this.

Congrats on the new addition to your family.

competentone · 09-15-2006, 04:34 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Noah930
Why don't you just ask the doctor? Instead of going through other channels, ask him directly. You're going to see him again in a follow-up visit, anyway. He may have had himself tested, anyway. It's not a confrontational type thing (unless he's got something to hide). It's a reasonable question, and the OB shouldn't be offended.

That was my thought too, and would have worked fine 40 years ago. I suspect though that the hospital's lawyers have already instructed the doctor to say nothing about the accident during any further communication with you/your wife.

If you have any trouble getting the info. about the doctor's health status, I wonder if you could lawyer up and threaten an "emotional distress" suit over the "not knowing" issue? Crazy, but sometimes you have to play hardball if lawyers start giving you too much of a run-around.

Noah930 · Noah930's Garage

I don't know. I'm a surgeon, and if someone asked me this reasonable question, I'd reply honestly. It costs me nothing (to get tested) and it's reasonable, so what do I care?

artplumber · 09-15-2006, 04:44 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by competentone
That was my thought too, and would have worked fine 40 years ago. I suspect though that the hospital's lawyers have already instructed the doctor to say nothing about the accident during any further communication with you/your wife.

Probably not. Unless the OB was bleeding profusely, the likelihood is that nothing went anywhere. Usually, this is a case of the operator getting stuck/cut with a dirty instrument. This usually poses a much greater risk to the operator than the patient. From what was described, the operator was cut severely somehow (?), who knows how much.

Frankly, he's probably more embarassed than anything else, since he was supposed to be the one using the knife.

Congrats, first one?

competentone · 09-15-2006, 05:04 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Noah930
I don't know. I'm a surgeon, and if someone asked me this reasonable question, I'd reply honestly. It costs me nothing (to get tested) and it's reasonable, so what do I care?

True, but exactly what you said could have the lawyers concerned. They probably want the doctor tested (again) first before making any comment.

Even if a doctor has no personal lifestyle risks for contracting HIV, the nature of his work puts him in a higher risk category than other people with no personal lifestyle risks.

If the doctor says, "I'm HIV negative," but the test was a year old, and it turns out he has somehow been exposed during that year period. His comment could be twisted by a lawyer to gain the sympathy of a jury if the case ended up being litigated at some later point.

curlesw · curlesw's Garage

Quote:

Originally posted by Noah930
Why don't you just ask the doctor? Instead of going through other channels, ask him directly. You're going to see him again in a follow-up visit, anyway. He may have had himself tested, anyway. It's not a confrontational type thing (unless he's got something to hide). It's a reasonable question, and the OB shouldn't be offended.

We would have but he was not our regular Dr...he was the Dr on call at the time and we have been dealing with our regular Dr since. We have asked our regular Dr, but no official response yet.

Thanks guys.

Wayne

Hoots · 09-15-2006, 06:22 PM

My thoughts go out to you and your family. I hope your newborn and wife are fine, and nothing has been transmitted.

I also suggest getting the doc tested for all BBPs. I do not want to sound like an alarmist, but I would be just as worried about hepatitis, and meningitis as I would HIV.

Best wishes,
Hoots

Joeaksa · 09-16-2006, 07:54 AM

Sorry to hear about this but its not that uncommon to be stuck or cut while on duty. My ex-wife did transplants and bypass operations and was stuck several times and cut twice. Both times she presented proof to the patient that she was HIV negative and she was tested yearly, but this was in Germany so no idea if this is done stateside.

As it already seems that the hospital and doctor are hunkering down in the slit trenches, I would consult a lawyer soon before they can work with the evidence anymore. Also get the names of anyone who was in the OR at the time.