[Writer’s note: This article is paraphrased from the original “Untold Stories of Pregnancy”, which I published 3 years ago in this paper in response to the current circulating issue on grumpy health professionals among government hospitals]
AT THE most ungodly hour in a rainy night, Emily, a teenage petite pregnant woman steps in the lying-in clinic due to labor pains. She was accompanied by her mother.
Being shameful of her unfortunate conception, Emily, had the peculiar antic of covering her young, pretty face with a small piece of towel as she was being interviewed.
Dressed in polka dots night gown, with her hair fixed in pony-tail, she was anxiously hugging her sponge bob stuffed toy as they waited for the staff to prepare the examination room. After the examination, Emily was referred to a government-run tertiary hospital: she was almost “fully-dilated”.
Inside the ambulance, Emily and her mother were praying the rosary in tears. The maternal closeness between the two was evident as the mother, in her own little ways, tried to comfort Emily endure the pains of labor.
Upon arriving at the Obstetrics Emergency Room of the hospital, Emily was examined by the nurse.
While being examined, she received a good number of condemnations from health professionals- doctors, nurses and midwives. She was mocked, ridiculed and was the object of insurmountable sarcasm probably because she was in her teen years.
It didn’t take long when she was transferred to the delivery room. With her legs spread apart on stirrups, she laid flat on a cold table as the midwife waited for the arrival of the resident obstetrician-on-duty.
The pain, which is common among women who are about to deliver was taking hold of Emily’s young body. Most women who have given birth could attest that a laboring mother can never develop immunity to this pain of motherhood that is beyond comprehension.
How much more for Emily, a girl who has turned into lady, now on her way to motherhood?
In a short while, the obstetrician arrived and as anticipated, she said one too many derogatory remarks against the teenage would-be mother.
She sat on a short chair that was facing Emily’s vagina with her head in between the latter’s elevated legs on stirrups to better visualize the birth canal and catch the baby promptly.
As contractions got tougher, Emily could hold the pain no more: she started screaming in intense agony. She was kicking the stirrups and distracting the medical staff.
“Shut up!”, the doctor yelled. But Emily, who was so consumed in an alien yet piercing pain could not contain her reaction.
Out of pique, the obstetrician pinched the inner thigh of Emily as she said, “Shut, up! You deserve the pain you little whore”.
Emily was in tears. “I want to go home… I want my mother here”, she uttered.
The doctor responded, “Why so? When you made this little bastard, was your mother present at the scene?”
The room was then flooded with caterwauls from nurses and midwives who were all making fun of the situation.
Alone in this tragic scene of despair, Emily could do nothing but pray.
As the baby’s huge head was coming out, the doctor decided to make a small cut on the perineum of Emily with use of a surgical scissor to prevent laceration. This procedure is called, “episiotomy”.
As the scissor cut through Emily’s tissues, she screamed in the most unbearable pain ever despite local anesthetics injected.
This time, no one can keep Emily from crying out violently. The doctor, who was already exasperated by the reaction of the teen, rose from her chair, removed the blood-soaked glove of her right hand and slapped it on Emily’s face.
“I told you to shut and cooperate!” “Do you want your baby to die?”
Emily’s reaction was contained to sobbing.
After a short while, a small baby girl was born.
“Congratulations, Emily, ang batang ina”, one nurse shouted joyfully.
After which the pain must have subsided a little bit as Emily relaxed. Suturing of the episiotomy was done by the doctor.
Emily was hugging her newborn in ambivalence.
And then when all other staff was doing their tasks, the doctor asked, “where is your boyfriend?”
“I have none”, said Emily.
“So you only had fun with the boys?”, the doctor followed.
“No doc.” Emily said respectfully.
“Then who impregnated you?” asked by the midwife, who interrupted.
“I was raped by my father”, Emily responded whimpering.
The room was then filled with silence for a time. Everyone felt sorry for their actions. But the emotional damage, psychological trauma and dehumanizing maltreatment under the hands of these mean and grumpy health professionals were already done.
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The writer is a medical professional who has been writing as a health columnist of this paper since 2008. He is regularly published every Tuesday and Friday. He is an alumnus of Xavier University- Ateneo de Cagayan from Elementary to Graduate School. Currently, he is a fulltime faculty member of Southwestern University-Phinma School of Medicine.
r [Email: polo.journalist@gmail.com]