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Ectopic pregnancy

Posted By Missed Ectopic pregnancy

"Ectopic pregnancy"

About: Geraldton Hospital / Emergency Department

(as the patient),

I am writing to share my concerns regarding the care I received during my recent visits related to pregnancy complications.

After discovering I was pregnant, I experienced bleeding and cramping and was admitted to the emergency department. Blood tests conducted then and two days later indicated decreasing HCG levels. The attending doctor explained that a decline might signal a miscarriage. During external and internal scans, no sac or embryo was detected, leading to uncertainty about my condition. She explained that it’s either too early to see or my body has already miscarried. I was advised to wait a week for a follow-up scan, which only increased my anxiety over a potential miscarriage. Unfortunately, the follow-up scan produced the same results—nothing was visible.

10 days later I returned to the emergency department after fainting and with worsening symptoms. I experienced long wait times that significantly affected my care. Despite reporting severe pain, nausea and fainting, I was left waiting in the triage room for extended periods of time. The help button in the room appeared to be unresponsive, making it difficult to notify staff as I don’t think they are emergency bells, just request a nurse bell so my husband had to run out and seek help while I was unresponsive.

Additionally, the bed in the triage area could not fit through the door, delaying my transfer to a treatment room. As a result, I had to be transported in a wheelchair for surgery after a doctor used a portable ultrasound to identify an internal bleed. Once I stood up this caused me to faint again. I feel all of these delays contributed to a life-threatening situation that could have been avoided.

I was also distressed to learn that the ectopic pregnancy had been missed during my initial scans, further delaying my diagnosis and treatment. This all resulted in emergency surgery due to ectopic rupture where I had to have a tube removed and had an internal bleed producing 2.6L of blood. I received several units of blood and iron. Upon discharge, I did not receive any discharge papers, leaving me without essential information regarding my post-operative care and recovery.

While I appreciate the care I ultimately received during surgery, I believe that significant improvements are necessary in emergency response protocols and communication between departments to prevent future patients from experiencing similar distress.

Thank you for your attention to this matter. I look forward to your response.

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Responses

Response from Cameron Ross, Operations Manager Geraldton Hospital, Midwest, WA Country Health Service last month
Cameron Ross
Operations Manager Geraldton Hospital, Midwest,
WA Country Health Service

Operations Manager Clinical Services

Submitted on 12/11/2024 at 12:03 PM
Published on Care Opinion at 12:04 PM

picture of Cameron Ross

Dear Missed Ectopic pregnancy

I want to thank you for taking the time to share your experience on Care Opinion, recognising that re-telling your story would not have been easy.

I was so sorry to read about the loss of your pregnancy and for the physical and emotional trauma that comes with this experience. I do hope that the love and support of family and friends is of comfort to you now and into the future.

I offer you my sincere apologies for actions at the hospital that added to an already distressing and traumatic time for you and your family. You describe long wait times and difficulties raising concerns with staff, as well as the lack of a discharge summary. I am very sorry that these elements of care were regrettably lacking. In this regard, I have spoken with the Director of Medical Services, the Head of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, along with our senior medical team to review your experience.

I want to assure you that we are committed to learning from your experience and improving the care we provide. In the first instance, we will ensure that our clinicians are made aware of all of the potential warning signs for an ectopic pregnancy and the appropriate management to undertake. We will also ensure that discharge planning always includes providing our patients with the knowledge and documentation they require to manage their care and any follow up in the community. We will also request that the maintenance team reviews the beds in the triage area and the call bells.

I would be very grateful if you would consider contacting us so we can learn more about your experience and ensure we investigate your concerns thoroughly. If you are happy to do this, please contact Dr Margaret Sturdy, who is the Director Medical Services. Dr Sturdy can be contacted on 9956 8125 or email wachs-midwestcgu@health.wa.gov.au

I would like to take this opportunity to let you know that if you, or a loved one, are in the hospital and feel that you are not receiving the care or treatment you need, we have a service called Aishwarya’s CARE Call. You may have noticed posters about Aishwarya’s CARE Call in the hospital’s Emergency Department. This is a 3-step process for patients, carers and family members to use if they are worried about the treatment being provided. In the Midwest, no matter what WA Country Health Service hospital you go to, this number is 1800 316 729. You can find out more about Aishwarya’s CARE Call here: WA Country Health Service - Aishwarya’s CARE Call

I do hope you are feeling better and would, again, like to thank you for sharing your experience with us.

Yours sincerely

Cameron Ross

Operations Manager Geraldton Health Campus

WA Country Health Service – Midwest

Tel 9956 2369

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Response from Margaret Sturdy, Director Medical Services, Geraldton Hospital, WA Country Health Service last month
Margaret Sturdy
Director Medical Services, Geraldton Hospital,
WA Country Health Service

Director Medical Services at Geraldton Hospital

Submitted on 15/11/2024 at 1:52 PM
Published on Care Opinion at 2:44 PM

picture of Margaret Sturdy

Dear Missed Ectopic pregnancy

Thank you for getting in contact with me, I really appreciated your call. I was glad to hear you are recovering from the tragic event you experienced.

As we discussed I will ensure a thorough investigation of your presentations occurs and once completed I will make contact directly and we can discuss our findings.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns as we’re investigating and I can be reached on 9956 8125

Kind regards,

Dr Margaret Sturdy

Director Medical Services – Geraldton Health Campus

WA Country Health Service - Midwest

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