So in the UK official guidance is to encourage patients to record encounters provided it doesn’t compromise other patient privacy. This is because it helps patients remember what’s said and medics shouldn’t have anything to hide with their patients.
I know I personally would be a lot more distracted and probably perform worse at my job if I was being recorded, and don’t work with a fraction of the pressure of healthcare. I’d rather my surgical staff is comfortable and focused than have my curiosity satisfied.
If the staff is fine and comfortable with it it would be fun to have a recording, but I wouldn’t demand it.
well, doctors dont want to get sued, also its a double edged sword. doctors have been recording of humiliating making fun of patients while they were under anastheia.
From what I’ve heard and read in the past, in addition to other comments here, there are probably two additional reasons why surgeries aren’t commonly recorded:
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Patients probably wouldn’t like knowing how casual a lot of operating rooms are. While you’re unconscious, they’re often playing music in the background and having idle gossip.
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Surgeons don’t want an additional element of stress caused by recording and additional regulation that would likely accompany that during situations that are already stressful.
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In the US, some doctors are afraid of being sued, some aren’t.
When my wife was pregnant with our third child, during one of her obgyn visits, I complained that they wouldn’t let me watch during the emergency c-section for number two. He not only told me I could watch, he said I could bring a camera.
In the UK my wife had an emergency c section, and they insisted I came into the operating room with her. By the time id got all ready with the scrubs and stuff, they’d already started when I got in there. After a minute or two, one of the doctors said i could take pictures. He looked confused/pitiful at me when I told him I didnt bring my phone in with me.
Of course I didnt bring my phone in, right? Theres beeping machines everywhere. If it can interfere with planes then of course im not going to risk it when my wife’s all open.
See? Some doctors are cool like that. Why can’t I ever get a cool doctor?
He was definitely awesome. He did a bit of an anatomy lesson while she was cut open.
Not judging at all, but it’s wild to me to imagine wanting to witness this. The very concept horrifies me, even knowing full well it’s a life saving procedure and all!
I’m right there with ya.
It was great!
Did he incorporate a song communicating a series of connections between various parts?
No, he wasn’t quite that awesome.
The C-section for the third kid was scheduled, right? I could see how a doctor would be less inclined to have a nervous husband watching during an emergency as opposed to a scheduled procedure.
Yes, the third was scheduled, second was an emergency (prospect cord).
I’m not sure if the doctor even noticed me for the second. It was the nurses who kept bugging me to sit down.
They brought a stool over, and I said I didn’t need it. They kept bugging me to sit down, but I was better off standing. I’m a bit too big for most furniture, and the stool they brought over was tiny.
To their credit, they stopped bugging me about it before my wife had to tell them to piss off.
Edit: It wasn’t about me watching what they were doing. They were all expecting me to pass out. The only way I would have passed out is if I sat on that stool and then tried to stand up again.
The reason for this really comes down to safety. As sure as you feel that you won’t pass out, anyone who works in an operating theatre will have seen someone pass out when they said they wouldn’t, which then creates a second patient! I’m sure you’d prefer everyone focus on looking after your wife rather than yourself. Just an extra perspective from someone who has seen this exact situation.
They brought a stool over…
That makes sense, they’d have to supply it for a C-section but not a vaginal birth since all that pushing means the stool typically just shows up.
They let me watch when my wife needed an emergency c-section, and I wasn’t even the baby’s father as it was a surrogacy for some friends.
Years ago I worked for a surgeon who was advocating that all surgical procedures in the hospital be video recorded, because it’s good for patients and providers. The pushback was strong. I don’t know if things have changed, but yeah, some doctors only see the liability, not the educational or self protection angles.
And as patients I feel we have the right to see what is being done/ what was done to us! I’m not a litigious person at all, I’m just fascinated because this is my body and I walk around with it all day every day for my entire life, why can’t I see what doctors are doing down there when they’ve got me under anesthesia?
Gotta imagine that’s a combination of personal preference and/or hospital policy. From a liability standpoint that’s just easy evidence for a malpractice lawsuit if one was so inclined.
