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From: reh@aplvax.UUCP (Ron E. Hall)
Newsgroups: net.women
Subject: Re: Birth Techniques (and their misconceptions)
Message-ID: <128@aplvax.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 15-Jul-85 10:45:41 EDT
Article-I.D.: aplvax.128
Posted: Mon Jul 15 10:45:41 1985
Date-Received: Tue, 16-Jul-85 16:02:37 EDT
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Organization: JHU/Applied Physics Lab, Laurel, MD
Lines: 37

> > > 3. All women should be hooked up to IV feeding during labor.
> > > 	The argument for this is that if a complication occurs during
> > > delivery (i.e. shock), putting an IV in then would be more difficult. It is
> > > routine in many hospitals. Others (more reasonably) only do it for women
> > > at high risk.

Elizabeth Hanes Perry-
> An IV line drastically restricts a woman's freedom to sit, squat,
> pace, or do whatever comes naturally.  I suspect that's why the
> originally-cited article suggested that IV lines should not be mandatory
> in all cases.  In a high-risk pregnancy, obviously, the rules are different;
> I think the major complaint about modern obstetrics is that some OBs
> behave as if all pregnancies were high-risk by definition.

Recent malpractice awards here in Maryland and the concommitant
rise in medical malpractice insurance premiums have made even 
normal pregnancy high risk for the OB. Failure to take all precautions
may leave him vulnerable to legal action if mother or child are
injured or die during delivery. An OB can afford to listen 
to many complaints about unnecessary IV's or restricted mobility
for the price of a single malpractice suit. It's hard to blame the OB
for choosing to protect his career, even at minor discomfort to the 
patient. He's really in a dilemma: the same people who criticize
him for doing too much when all goes well will sue the socks off him
for doing too little when all does not go well.


					Ron Hall
					JHU/APL
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-- 

					Ron Hall
					JHU/APL
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