Was this malpractice?

Question

10 yrs ago I had an abortion. Upon being laid on the table and strapped down, I changed my mind, I said I did not want to do this, I said this 3 times to the physician and the attendents. I had chosen to be sedated so I would not remember it. I started to fight them as they would not let me off the table, they did inject something but it did not put me under, and even with my protests they preformed the painful abortion anyway. I have talked about my abortion, but I have never shared that I said no and changed my mind, and they did it anyway till now. Was that illegal? Its seems so? Is there anything I can do about this......I mean.....what if some other women have had this experience? They are like me, afraid to say this because it seems outrageous and unbeleivable. Please respect the fact that I do not want to be lamblasted for my wrong decision to have one. I am only looking for true advice.

for some clarity.........I was NOT sedated at the time of protesting. They injected me after I said no tiwce AS they were holding me down on the table. I said no again as they were injecting me, and they did not wait AT ALL to start the procedure, therefore I was awake and struggling the entire and I felt everything. Also, what PROOF can I have? I can tell you that they also treated me completely unlike the other patients afterwards. They were suppose to take you to a room where you reclined for two hours before going home, they sent me to a table in the resting room where I could see women who went in before me getting their 2 hours, gave me some juice to drink and said to leave immediately after drinking that.

Answer 1

You most likely won't like this answer, and I won't pretend to understand law, or abortion legalities, but this is where my mind went upon reading your question.

HOW OLD were you at the time?
If considered a minor for example, then your parents would have signed the consent forms and not you. They could have instigated you have an abortion and the clinic would be legally complying with the parents wishes.
If you only changed your mind while on the table, it sounds like you already went through any counselling etc girls are (?) given before something like this. But if you were a minor, had already been given the go ahead by a counsellor and your parents wanted it done....legally the clinic may have done nothing wrong.

Either way, I'm truly sorry you regret the past, and only hope you can eventually get past it and move on with your life.

Answer 2

It was not illegal if consent for the abortion were signed prior to the procedure being performed.

As people under anesthesia are under the influence of a controlled substance, if you did start speaking out AFTER you were injected, it would not be legal ground to stop the procedure if a consent form was already signed while you were in a coherent state because you were under the influence of a narcotic substance and legally "not of sound mind" when you requested them to stop.

You don't indicate where you live, but in most cases in the United States, the statue of limitations of malpractice is usually between 6 mos-4 years, which has long passed.

I am sorry for you loss, but the best I can offer is a link to an abortion recovery center to help you heal your wounds.
http://www.abortionrecoverycounseling.com/

Answer 3

What kind of evidence do you have? In a court of law it will be a credibility issue. Are you more credible than this doctor? Also I am not sure what the statute of limitations are on this. If I were you I would consult with a Trial Lawyer. If you live in the south, send it to a jury and I bet you would win.(If you have evidence other than what you say) They want solid proof... Accusing someone of this is huge! I would find a lawyer and make sure they did this on a contingency fee. But I wouldn't accuse anyone unless I had other evidence than my word.They will show forms you signed, that released them of liability, however they can counter any of your claims by saying you were under sedation. I would call it unethical, bot not malpractice. Unless you had some kind of damage internally or something. I don't know I will ask some friends also and see what we could come up with.



After reading your update:

Please call a trial lawyer A.S.A.P

Answer 4

You withdrew your consent. Noone can perform a medical procedure on you without your consent, so not only was it malpractice, it was a felony battery committed on you. You could report it to the police and/or state medical licensing board. However, they might not do anything since it's been 10 years. Depends on the statute of limitations where you are. .

Suing the Dr. or clinic is probably not an option at this point because it's been 10 years. In Cal, you've got 1 year from the date of the incident to sue for personal injury. Check with a lawyer to see if he can come up with other legal theories

Answer 5

I would talk to an attorney, and see what your chances of successfully filing a malpractice complaint. At this point, unless you have tangible proof, it is a "she said, he said" accusation, and I am not sure how far you would get with it.

I am really surprised that they didn't pay close enough attention to you during this. Maybe get your records to see if there was any mention of this.

Good luck. Quit beating yourself up for this. You obviously felt that it was the best decision for you at the time. Hindsight is always 20/20.

Answer 6

The fact that the surgeon performed an abortion,which is a criminal act.It is already considered a malpractice according to the definition of "mal praxis".Actions performed by the surgeon should have an informed consent.Like you said it was done out of your permission.