C-Sections on the rise.

i saw the start of this trend 15 years ago in fl...some docs more than happy to schedule a c/s for mom's convenience or because they didn't want to "get stretched out down there" or they were fearful of labor.

but i have to agree that most of the time, it's to forstall a lawsuit. after all, if a baby goes "bad" it has to be someone's fault, right!

I still do not understand mothers who 'schedule' their babies birth because is is 'convenient for them' how ridiculous.

The baby should stay in the protection of the womb for as long as it's possible (or safe).

I found the following statement interesting, "The medical records used in the study typically did not give a reason for the C-section, and the researchers could only speculate about causes."

Why in the world would an OB not state the reason for performing a C-section in the patient's chart, unless there was no valid reason?

I do not find it hard to believe at all that the reasons were not there, or obsure. I mean, lets face it...how do you write in a chart

"C/S because MD had dinner plans."

You would think that insurance companies would be policing that a bit more. For pete's sake they seem to nit pick every claim of mine, down to the last detail. But I suppose creative charting can lend a hand in that area. ( do I sound cynical enough yet????)

c/s indicated due to patient refusing to have her va-jay-jay get jiggly!

There was an article in the Maine paper about the c/sec rate here. One hospital had a 49% c/sec rate!!! All but one were in the 30% range. Now Maine women are not high powered execs who schedule a c/sec because of their busy lifestyle. The reasons given for the high rate were--ACOG's edict on VBAC's and litigation fears of MD. Nowhere was DR's convenience or pt's convenience mentioned.

One MD talked about WHO's policy that c/sec rates should only be 15%. He said "Maybe in Angola. There aren't many lawyers there."

Last month, our scheduled c/s rate was 14%. Add to that, our unscheduled c/s rate of 18%, you get a total of 32% c/s versus 68% lady partsl deliveries for the month.

We don't have a breakdown of what the reasons were for the unscheduled c/s, but I'm sure I could break it down from our surgical record book. You can bet that there were primary elective c/s in that 32% total c/s rate. Some for patient request, but most for MD reasons.

I do not find it hard to believe at all that the reasons were not there, or obsure. I mean, lets face it...how do you write in a chart

"C/S because MD had dinner plans."

You would think that insurance companies would be policing that a bit more. For pete's sake they seem to nit pick every claim of mine, down to the last detail. But I suppose creative charting can lend a hand in that area. ( do I sound cynical enough yet????)

I agree. One of the things that I think about every time I read one of these articles (other than the fact that its so wrong and women are choosing this rout because they are so misinformed) is how this is going to affect insurance rates for everyone....I plan on having a home birth, but will have insurance of course for "just in case"...should I pay insurance rates up the orifice because other women are CHOOSING to have c-sections? If women are choosing to have c-sections they should have to pay for it out of pocket...insurance does not pay for cosmetic surgery, why is it paying for this? because doctors "doctor" the reason for one....if the doc can not come up with a TRUE medical reason, then he can pay it himself. I understand that many docs do them out of fear of litigation, but if a doc did a unnecessary c-section on me...he would really need to fear litigation!:argue:

The OB group I used charged insurance the same rate regardless of method of delivery. Now, obviously the hospital billed more for a C-section than a lady partsl delivery, but it was refreshing to know that the OBs weren't profiting from elective C-sections.

why are mother's opting for c-sections? I had to have two due to health reasons and I would NOT recommend it (only if it a life or death situation). I still get mad I never had the opportunity to push!!

The OB group I used charged insurance the same rate regardless of method of delivery. Now, obviously the hospital billed more for a C-section than a lady partsl delivery, but it was refreshing to know that the OBs weren't profiting from elective C-sections.

Well they do profit don't they ....in time. You pay x amount of bucks for a 30 minute section and a few 10 minute visits postpartum. Or you pay the same amount of money for he or she to see you through an 8 hour labour. Hmmmm................can do a hell of a lot of sections in one day in comparison to labours.