Private Hospital / Paediatrician Experience - Documenting Boy as a Girl

SydOzber on 21/06/2019 - 20:41

Hi all,

I'm writing here to get some feedback or suggestions in regards to my recent experience at a Private hospital(+ Paediatrician).

We have opted to go to Norwest Private Hospital to have our first baby. It was an elective c-sec scheduled on 06th June & everything went as planned. We were blessed with a baby boy :) My wife along with the bub were discharged on 11th June.

On the day of delivery, I was given the parent pack(medicare, centrelink forms etc.) which had all the information correct. On the day of discharge, a midwife has shown my baby's blue book along with the discharge summary and placed it inside the NSW new born goodies bag.. after which we walked out of the hospital.

We received an invoice of about $500 for the initial & follow up consultations by the Paediatrician the very next day after coming home, which is yet to be paid.

Yesterday 20/06 We decided to go to our Family doctor to get the bub weight & Jaundice levels checked. We handed over the blue book to our GP, that was the first time the Blue book was opened. He noticed the following discrepancies.

1) Sticker on top of the blue book & header labels within has the Gender as "Female" where as I had a baby boy.
2) Paediatrician who saw the bub has filled the "Newborn Examination" section in the Blue book.
This Gentleman ticket the Sex as "Female", Hand written Genitalia as "Female", Testes fully descended R/L as "NA(Not applicable)".
Also, in the comments section he has hand written as "Normal Female Infant".

My GP has pointed out these things and we were completely upset with what has happened after spending nearly $4k out of pocket going to a private hospital. Private insurance claims show that the hospital were paid out close to $7k for our 5 day admission.

I called up the hospital and they quickly followed up with Maternity & I received a call from one of the mid wife to get the book in to rectify all the incorrect information.
I spoke with the Paediatrician as well who accepted that it was his mistake, apologized and was willing to update the information in Blue book ASAP.

In parallel, I gave a call to HCCC and inquired about my rights. I was advised to talk to the Hospital & Doctor. The lady over the phone mentioned that this is very uncommon and she was shocked to know that the doctor actually opened the nappy and written notes as a Female infant. She said that if the doctor accepts it as a mistake, I could actually lodge a complaint with them.. which they would review and take appropriate action against the doctor.
However, any compensation related would need to be lodged with NSW Fair trading after it has been lodged with HCCC.

I went to the hospital today to get the information rectified, and they copied over the information in to a new blue book and i was given both old & new books for records.

What would the community here suggest or recommend ?
- Should I take it easy and leave it here.
- Talk to the hospital & Doctor for compensation - The doctor leases space in the hospital and is not directly employed.
- Raise it with HCCC, Fair trading etc. about Hospital and the Doctor.

Thanks in advance.

Health & Beauty

Comments

  • Baysew on 22/06/2019 - 10:02
    +5

    You have been given a "priceless" story which you will be able to tell over and over to embarrass your son.

    • Rumstein on 23/06/2019 - 15:59

      We were so happy to walk out of the hospital with our new baby girl. Then we realised you were a boy and the paediatrician just messed up.

  • louiseos on 22/06/2019 - 10:15
    +4

    The doc made a mistake with the paperwork but the medical work was ok.

    Yup definitely compo. I need my doc to have perfect paperwork.

    Or you could be grateful that you have a healthy wife and child.

    Mistakes happen. Paperwork can be fixed. You have a healthy wife and child. Be grateful … focus your energy on nappy changes and helping with baby.

    :)

  • ozbjunkie on 22/06/2019 - 10:22
    +2

    Should complain that he misgendered your babe. That's hate speech /s

    Seriously though, I would be questioning whether, if the doctor is rushing or absent minded enough to mistake gender, their other medical observations were sufficiently competent. The answer could be "yes" but I can understand if you would wonder.

  • Vote for Pedro on 22/06/2019 - 14:38
    +2

    I can see why you are unhappy. You pay for a service that you expect to be delivered with all care and skill and fit for purpose. However, in this instance it was all ok but a mistake happened in a small component of the service. Personally, this would make me worry about what else could’ve been missed, particularly in such a momentous life event. It would cause some anxiety.

    But, you have a healthy baby. Congratulations. I wouldn’t be seeking compensation.

    Would I report it? Maybe, but only from the point of view of future patients, not compensation. Maybe there are other reports of carelessness from the same Dr that may need to be looked at as a whole.

  • MoonlapseVertigo on 22/06/2019 - 14:59

    We are having our first child at norwest very soon, so thanks for this. I will now be double checking our blue book!

    Legend OP

    Best of luck to you and the Mrs, wishing you 10 hour sleeps

    • rodb on 22/06/2019 - 20:09

      3 years in and I’m yet to have a 10 hour sleep!

    • danyool on 22/06/2019 - 20:47

      10 hour sleeps

      That's a fairytale for a newborn. They have to feed every 2-3 hours, even overnight. And here's the kicker - the time between feeds is from the beginning of the last feed, not the end.

      So say it takes your baby 30 minutes to feed, you could be 1.5 hours away from next feed start time!!

  • TheBilly on 22/06/2019 - 15:26
    +3

    Gender as "Female" where as I had a baby boy.

    By law you have to chop off his pee pee

  • pyramid on 22/06/2019 - 15:40
    +1

    This thread and another thread about truck hitting car - have made my cold weekend better….in both cases op are trying find excuse to benefit..

  • Ken1977 on 22/06/2019 - 15:41

    Collecting $500 for a service he clearly did not perform is criminal. When we pay for a service we expect to get what we are paying for. Not to just write a report with no actual examination and charge a fee. If I took my car to a mechanic and they charged $500 for a major service and I find out they have actually done no work just stamped the log book I would be furious and demand a full refund, and I would even be taking it further.

    • [Deactivated] on 22/06/2019 - 15:51
      +13

      So if you took your Camry for a service (oil change yada yada) and the service was complete but the receipt says VW Beetle.

      Is it now free?

      • Vote for Pedro on 22/06/2019 - 16:23
        +3

        Oh this hurts soooo sooo much but … +1

        What you could do though is let them know and maybe they can see why it happed or to see if it’s a regular thing and to keep an eye on the mechanic that did it.

        • [Deactivated] on 22/06/2019 - 18:38
          +1

          The mechanic probably services a dozen cars in a row before doing any paperwork.

          When he gets to the paperwork, he knows the cars that had non-standard stuff done and the rest were just routine service.

          The outcome? All the ones that were routine may have some clerical cross over but it absolutely does not reflect on the quality of the service provided.

          • jackary on 23/06/2019 - 14:20
            +1

            @[Deactivated]: I agree with your point… but you’re making as many assumptions about the pead as the OP.

            Is what you’re suggesting what actually happened? The point is we’ll never know. I’d be inclined to think clerical error myself but you or I don’t know that for sure.

            However - Would I be trying to claim compensation? In either scenario, the answer is no.

            • [Deactivated] on 23/06/2019 - 14:22

              @jackary: It's one of those files I keep in the cold case cabinet.

              If… No… when we have more info, I'll circle back here to… Tales of the Clerical Errors.

      • AdosHouse on 22/06/2019 - 16:43
        +2

        I'd want compensation for the trauma of the paperwork telling me I own a Volkswagon. The horror.

        • [Deactivated] on 22/06/2019 - 18:40

          But old school beetles are so cute.

          I love cuddling up to a rusty heap of tetanus over a hot mug of chocolate.

          • AdosHouse on 22/06/2019 - 19:35

            @[Deactivated]: The old one had character, like the Beetles or the old Shaggin Wagons.

            • [Deactivated] on 22/06/2019 - 20:19

              @AdosHouse: I see I misspelled tetanus character.

      • Ken1977 on 23/06/2019 - 16:12

        The question is, was the service actually performed. If your camry was serviced and they stated it was a Volkswagen and your automatic transmission serviced and your car is clearly a manual, you would question what work was actually preformed.
        For all we know this kids testes could be all twisted up and it didn't get checked.

        • [Deactivated] on 23/06/2019 - 17:31
          +1

          If the doctor isn't sure that was the kid he saw, let him/her do the examination again, though I think the doctor would have just gone from one crib to another, did a visual and read the charts, and ended up with a whole stack of "nothing abnormal detected".

          I'm not saying that's exactly what happened but that's typical in this sort if setting.

          Honestly, people are imagining the weirdest scenarios. Hospitals aren't an exception to the workplace rule as far as how work gets done. Just line em up and if the lot didn't have anything extraordinary, batch notes.

  • Tee Rex Arms on 22/06/2019 - 16:55
    +15

    OP must be real fun at parties

  • Trance N Dance on 22/06/2019 - 17:15
    +3

    Not a lawyer but here's a uni level crash course in medical negligence cases. There needs to be three things to justify a negligence case:
    1. Something adverse needs to have happened.
    2. The incidence needs to be proven as a result of negligence by the practitioner.
    3. There needs to be damages or permanent loss of quality of life as a result of the adverse incident.

    Was there something adverse? Yes.
    Was there negligence? Poor record keeping is poor practice, so yes enough to be reasonably accepted.
    Was there damages? No.

    Speak to the doc, raise your concerns and settle it like gentlepeople, this is an issue that can easily be fixed and resolved. Raise the issue that it has caused undue stress and costs and ask for something reasonable. Keeping one eye on the money is one surefire way to piss people off and doctors are no different. Treat them with kindness and understanding that clerical mistakes happen and they will return in kind.

    • Daabido on 22/06/2019 - 22:49
      -2

      Gentlemen, treated with kindness and understanding will return in kind. What, is he going to give him a reach around?

    • Ti-au on 25/06/2019 - 21:40
      1. Something adverse needs to have happened.

      Court wouldn't even touch this - Where is the real injury? A chop of leg is adverse. How is a clerical error adverse? Protip: It's not.

      Wouldn't even get before the first hurdle.

      1. Neg

      A clerical error is Not negligence - it's a clerical error. Chopping of the wrong leg is negligence. Not following the standards of care is negligence - this has nothing to do with standard of care. It's filling out a form wrong. Zero Neg.

      1. Damages
        Your right Op would have to prove Damages - this is even more laughable than the previous two.
  • Aliastar on 22/06/2019 - 17:28
    +1

    sjw or clerical error.

    I'd report it, if anything, it could make sure he does his job properly in the future

    • Ti-au on 25/06/2019 - 21:42

      lol.

      His job is to deliver babies healthy, while clerical paperwork forms part of the job, it is not the primary task of Doc.

      Nobody is going to give a s**t about this. Which is Good.

  • star-ggg on 22/06/2019 - 17:58
    +2

    I would at least try to get the consultation fee back. Your only evidence of the paedotrician's work is completely wrong. Did he even do the work? All these replies saying you should just be happy with a healthy baby boy- how do you know that it's healthy and the testes is "fully extended"? From your GP/because it's obvious? If so then what is the job of a paediatrician?

    • Ti-au on 25/06/2019 - 21:45

      how do you know that it's healthy and the testes is "fully extended"?

      Op said: We were blessed with a baby boy
      Not: We were blessed with a dead baby boy

      Paediatrician is to check infant. If he can prove he inspected the infant - Op pays.

  • DiscoJango on 22/06/2019 - 18:00
    +2

    hey, someone made a mistake. better sue them for all their worth, bankrupt them and send them to jail!

    great job society, you wonder why anyone that makes mistakes try so hard to cover them up nowdays.

  • Ocean on 22/06/2019 - 18:10

    Our old family doc confused kids genders for years, always thought it was quite funny. Hes retired now.

    • [Deactivated] on 22/06/2019 - 18:43
      +5

      Confused?

      He was just ahead of his time.

  • dogboy on 22/06/2019 - 18:25
    +7

    I don't get it. Someone made a simple mistake which had no impact to you or your family and now you are upset and want some kind of compensation? Maybe move to America…

    • Ti-au on 25/06/2019 - 21:46
      +1

      Even in America this would fall flat.

      It just falls flat here faster.

  • superValue on 22/06/2019 - 19:15
    +3

    Is there baby healthy? Yes.

    Enjoy Parenthood. Don't expend time and energy on things that don't have a "real" impact on your health or wellbeing because of a documented insignificant mistake.

  • Bellpop on 22/06/2019 - 19:18
    +4

    He made a mistake. Said sorry. Everyone is healthy and happy (aside from you). Grow up.

  • BestofOZB on 22/06/2019 - 19:40
    +3

    OP, write a complaint to the hospital, the doctor, AHPRA and HCCC. Why not? Waste people's time because you are not alone. You will be surprised how many of those stupid complaints role in everyday. Then you wonder why your taxes are up, your health insurance costs more and doctors charge more. Are you sure your baby ain't a girl?

    • morse on 23/06/2019 - 11:59
      +2

      Reporting near misses and documentation errors helps to improve quality and safety in hospitals and should be encouraged. It's not a waste of time at all. It's not about getting people in trouble, but ensuring processes are safe and that other errors don't occur. This time it was sex - next time it could be an allergy that is incorrectly recorded or recorded in the wrong chart, which has the potential to be fatal. If they have a process issue or an individual staff issue, the hospital should know about it. All hospitals have departments that look at quality and complaints (as they should), so there is no additional cost through tax, insurance or otherwise.

      • BestofOZB on 23/06/2019 - 14:14
        +3

        Reporting is different from a complaint. OP already reported it to the doctor and the hospital and got things corrected, I'm sure that particular doctor will be more careful next time.

        When someone complains, another person, or many other people have to get involved to review that complaint and respond, usually in writting, which increases cost and eventually drives prices up. As individuals, we are responsible to use our common sense before we lodge a complaint.

  • LXE3 on 22/06/2019 - 19:42
    +2

    Why does everyone want something for nothing these days? Is there any wonder the fees are so high? Make the doctor busier again dealing with your trivial “complaint” which is really just a way to avoid your bill.

  • berger on 22/06/2019 - 20:15
    +2

    As long as everyone learns from their mistakes and this does not happen again. Least they could do is send a nice bunch of flowers as an apology, but they would probably have the wrong address listed…

    • Ti-au on 25/06/2019 - 21:48

      Its a clerical error.

      WTF would anyone send flowers? If they do I hope it goes to wrong address.

  • MessyG on 22/06/2019 - 20:23
    +10

    You know if I made an error like this (and I say this as a doctor, although not a paed), I'd be pretty mortified. I'd apologise, rectify it, and I'd probably waive the fee because while no harm was done, the potential for harm if you've not picked that up would always be there. You could simply ring up the rooms or write the doctor a letter and ask them to waive their consultation fee, I'd be surprised if they said no. Bear in mind though, we live in a world where people very rarely admit to mistakes, let alone rectify them and apologise so this doctor sounds like a pretty good one and even with that mistake (in which no one came to any harm), I wouldn't be trying to punish them too much - too many good people are leaving the profession already.

    • blackorange on 23/06/2019 - 01:13

      This is the most sensible comment here! Just gently ask for the paed fee to be waived or just don't pay it. Save your energy for something else

    • Ti-au on 25/06/2019 - 21:53
      +1

      The question is did he do his job in inspecting child? If he did then the fee is payable. He might of made a mistake, but a mistake on paperwork does not invalidate the job done.

      If you had the surname wrong on a defendant, would you waive all fees? Of course not. It does not invalidate the time spent with the clients, research, drafting, etc.

      Sure op could ask for it, but if I was Doc I would say no.

  • May4th on 22/06/2019 - 20:50
    -2

    Well let's hope your baby boy never makes a single mistake in his life

  • gimme on 22/06/2019 - 21:57
    +3

    Just when I thought I'd seen it all. Talk about zero perspective. You've just had a healthy baby and come here with some long winded drivel. Get a life

  • sa-ozzie on 22/06/2019 - 22:05
    +1

    Mistaking a boy for a girl is basic incompetence….I would not pay paediatrician bill…..no compensation payment though

  • cardboardbox on 22/06/2019 - 22:21

    Get. Over. It. 🤦🏻‍♀️

    Take your feelings and eat them like a normal person.

    Move on with your life.

    • Ti-au on 25/06/2019 - 21:56
      +1

      Op is snowflake.

      Well a cheap ass snowflake.

      I guess instead of the greatest day is having his health child born, his greatest day can be complaining about the Doc in the hope of a discount for pretend hurt feelings over a clerical error.

  • [Deactivated] on 22/06/2019 - 22:42
    +3

    Fun answer:

    I need an address to send the dummy.
    No, not for the kid, for you.

    Straight answer:

    Look up the word "compensation".
    Explain to me precisely what your loss is.

    In a hospital setting this is nothing. You'd think they cut off the wrong leg or something.

    Now suck on your dummy.

    • Ti-au on 25/06/2019 - 21:54

      This.

  • cosmos on 22/06/2019 - 23:09

    Since you asked, I would suggest "take it easy and leave it here."

    You have a new born baby, enjoy your time with baby and take care of baby's mother.
    Why do you want to go behind compensation and HCCC?
    If I were you, I would go and get some good sleep when I get time (instead of thinking of compensation and HCCC).

  • cille745 on 23/06/2019 - 01:24
    +1

    Surely I can't be the only one that thought they had brought home the wrong baby when reading this

  • paraneoplastic on 23/06/2019 - 03:18
    +6

    This is the problem with society. Entitlement.

    Us medical professionals are in a high risk field of work, peoples lives are literally in the balance.

    Mistakes happen, it is the reason we are all required to have medical malpractice insurance usually 20 mil +

    It's likely during the neonate examination the paediatrician skimmed over opening the diaper and checking genitelia (however given that your child has voided their and passed meconium within 24 hrs there is no negligence), or mistook what he saw, as some infant girls can be born with membranous labia giving off the appearance of ambiguous genitalia . Even still, there was no harm done to your child, there was nothing conducted which would constitute punitive damages or even gross negligence. I'm sure if you tried you could get the doctors medico defence to pay out a small sum to avoid court and legal fees, as well as tarnishing the doctors reputation. But to do so, would be sinking to the lowest of society, blatant disregard for basic human decency and morals.

    • eldudebrothers on 23/06/2019 - 07:02
      +5

      Doctor here too, while I agree that there was probably not the best exam and the clerical error is a bit weird, suing the doctor is a bit extreme. As long as he 1. apologised, 2. fixed the error, 3. provided follow up bulk billed to reexamine for reassurance(please get a referral from your GP harharhar)and 4. made plans not to make this mistake agian, the problem should be considered resolved.

      • Ti-au on 25/06/2019 - 21:59
        +1

        We talk about suing the doctor.

        ZERO courts in Australia, and probably the world, would spend more than 3 minutes of on this.

        The majority of the 3 minutes would be blasting the solicitor (while referring Solicitor to the law complaints board) or telling the Op he is an idiot, for taking this to Court by asking him what damage was suffered?

  • greatlamp on 23/06/2019 - 06:53
    +2

    There is a couple of possibilities here that you are suggesting

    • the Doc doesn't perform the job they are paid to do, and just writes in the book that there are no abnormalities for every child.

    • the Doc gave you someone else's book in error, or wrote someone else's notes in your book.

    Most likely- the Doc inspects all the babies at once, finds no problem with any of them, fills out 10 books for different children and leaves them with the nurse

    It was a clerical error, you are upset because you assume that the Doc must be incompetent to make some mistake, and Doctors aren't allowed to make mistakes

    If you think about how easy it is to make such an error, and look from the Doctor's point of view, you are overreacting (like most patients do - it is understandable)

    • morse on 23/06/2019 - 12:13
      +3

      Doctors are allowed to and do regularly make mistakes and when they do (as you should know if you're a Doctor) the process through which they happened should be modified to reduce risk of the mistake being made again. Medical documentation errors can be extremely serious, so if the Doctor/hospital has poor documentation processes e.g. filling out 10 books at a time that sometimes leads to the wrong information being recorded against the patient's record, then the doctor and hospital should fix the process to reduce risk of harm.

  • [Deactivated] on 23/06/2019 - 07:12
    +1

    Your bill doesn't sound terribly high for private maternity and you've got a healthy baby boy out of it and I presume a healthy wife. Get the book corrected, make sure his balls have been checked out and enjoy your time with your family.

    It's good that you fed it back to the hospital though. Something went wrong that shouldn't again, and while your baby has had no harm come of it, it plausibly could cause harm if someone is either doing a sloppy exam or documenting poorly and something important was missed. They'll look into it and try to fix whatever has caused the error.

  • RSmith on 23/06/2019 - 08:57
    +2

    Documenting Boy as a Girl

    Gender equality.

    • CalmLemons on 23/06/2019 - 14:34
      -1

      Yes, too many boys born on that day. Have to keep the left wing groups happy. Must register all babies born after 3PM as female.

    • gimme on 23/06/2019 - 17:05

      This should have got more ++. It's actually no more ridiculous than a number of other non sarcastic ideas being put forward in this day and age. Although the kfc crowd here wouldn't probably get it.

  • athk on 23/06/2019 - 09:41
    -1

    I don't think you deserve a baby. A baby that's going to make mistakes.. like the doctor did.

    Pathetic.

  • matt-ozb on 23/06/2019 - 10:05
    +1

    It was a typo. Move on. Aren't you busy enough with a newborn? I think you should help with the baby, rather than waste time with this on ozbargain.

  • lainey13 on 23/06/2019 - 10:20

    If you think paying thousands for private health insurance and private hospital birth precludes mistakes or makes for a magical amazing experience you are dreaming.

  • Klasglart on 23/06/2019 - 10:37
    +2

    I work at a major hospital with a maternity unit and this occurs more often than you think. One admin error cascades to a more e.g patient labels. Obviously this isn't ideal and there is usually stringent controls in place but I don't think this is an issue you raise to the HCCC nor something you would raise in order to obtain compensation. This sort of attitude in seeking retribution where over an administrative issue where no harm was done and was swiftly rectified just further erodes the trust between clinicians and patients and tilts us more to other healthcare systems such as the US.

  • morse on 23/06/2019 - 11:50

    It may be appropriate for the paediatrician to waive for the consult fee. Did you see the paediatrician assess your baby? Were you satisfied with the assessment other than the documentation? Are there other notes from the consultation? (should be in the hospital's medical record/chart for your baby) You should be able to make a freedom of information request for all notes from your wife and baby's admission (usually there's an administrative cost associated with this, that is probably higher in private hospitals than in public). It occurred to me that if you didn't see him assess your baby that without documentation there's no evidence it took place, in which case you shouldn't be paying for it, and there's a risk that babies aren't having the appropriate assessments that they should.

    I don't think compensation makes sense since no harm was done. However, making complaints/giving feedback to hospitals isn't about getting anyone in trouble or compensation. It's about improving quality of care and processes to reduce risk of harm to others in the future. Poor documentation practices can be very serious, so if there's a process issue within the hospital, it's in their interest to know about it. Hospitals should have a culture of encouraging complaints and feedback as part of their quality and safety process. Generally this is done directly through the hospital unless your are not satisfied with the hospital's response, in which case you can then escalate to the HCCC or other appropriate authority. Generally this is done through the hospital's liaison service, not directly to the ward or doctor involved in your care.

    • BestofOZB on 23/06/2019 - 14:20
      +1

      "However, making complaints/giving feedback to hospitals isn't about getting anyone in trouble or compensation."

      Well, OP ckearly is only interested in getting some compensation.

      • Ti-au on 25/06/2019 - 22:01

        Op is a cheap ass.

  • AJW on 23/06/2019 - 12:22
    +4

    Lmao, another "I caught a professional making a mistake (which they apologised for and COMPLETELY fixed) - so how can I make something out of it for me???" post.

    Be thankful you have a healthy baby and mother…

    • Geryatric on 23/06/2019 - 13:04
      +2

      I know right

      • AJW on 24/06/2019 - 12:49
        +1

        Sorta thing most people would laugh about when their healthy kids turned 21. not sue for…seriously wtf

  • Geryatric on 23/06/2019 - 13:03
    +1

    Lol compensation

  • Notcheapenough on 23/06/2019 - 13:45
    -1

    Im sorry about your experience. I'd suggest letting the paeiatrician know you won't be paying the remaining $500 and ask your GP for a new referral to a different paediatrician. You've clearly lost confidence in him or her and that is enough reason. I would write to the HCCC and advise them of the error and how it made you feel. It is not enough to warrant an investigation, butif it is a pattern, they need to know. While most of your costs are covered by health insurance, that doesn't mean this should go without question. We asked our obstetrician to justify a cost even though it was covered. All the best with your son

    • Ti-au on 25/06/2019 - 22:03

      I also hope Op does not pay.

      Then they can give to a debt collection agency and default his credit report for being an idiot.

      Then he can't borrow any $.

      Sounds like a great plan!

  • CalmLemons on 23/06/2019 - 14:32
    +1

    When you grew up, did anyone ever tell you treat people how you would like to be treated?

    Would you like to be flogged because you made a genuine clerical error, between delivering babies, screaming mums, important things like getting surgery right and the emotions of a sleep deprived dad and family?

    As a new parent, you should now consider playing a leadership role, is this how you would want your child to behave when they grow up? Is this how you solve problems, by creating more problems?

    The blue book is pretty much meaningless - only used for maternal health nurses and GP visits, vaccinations, what matters is the birth certificate form when filled in and issued.

    • Ti-au on 25/06/2019 - 22:04

      But, but, but Op wants a discount! Ma Money!

  • Aerojelly on 23/06/2019 - 14:56

    Congratulations on your newborn; may you have oodles of fun looking after them for the next 18-30 years!

    Now, I wonder what that $500 charge specifically entails in private land? Is it purely the ~5-15 min baby check? Or includes the 5-30 min time it takes to go through the crappy documentation system to ensure no antenatal or perinatal issues are found or require addressing postnatally (and not just checking transcribed records because there will be incorrect documentation). Or perhaps it includes the Paediatrician's on-call rate overnight in case anything happens, such as if your wife required an emergency caesaerian and they were called in to ensure bub kept breathing. Perhaps the $500 was worth it, perhaps not (although if they actually went in to theatre I feel like $500 is pretty low in private land)

    They should have documented correctly and not inconvenienced you, however it is unlikely for the check to not have been performed if they are a good doctor and should be documented.

    Will this mistake happen again? Clerical mistakes are likely every now and then with any sort of human interface. Hopefully they will remember you next time they just look at the label and apply their usual template. Should you be taking action against them? From what you have told us they sounded sorry, fixed the issue and there does not appear to be any medical negligence but if you were still unhappy with their service you could lodge a formal complaint to the hospital and go from there.

    I'm glad bub has been fine (hope the two of you get some sleep!). Don't forget to tease them when they get older / 18th birthday / wedding speech.

  • asianbargain on 23/06/2019 - 15:04

    Sorry op out of topic,my wife recently pregnant and I'm thinking go private. how much did you spend on private hospital? Do you have insurance?

    • Bront-1800 on 23/06/2019 - 16:05

      Not OP but have had two kids using PHI.

      Live in Brisbane and the costs were a lot less than Melbourne and Sydney friends - my Ob with 20+ Years experience cost $500 compared with $4000 in Sydney. Including appointments I calculated we were 1-1.5k our of pocket. Again, Sydney and Melbourne friends were well above the 6+k out of pocket. With insurance.

      Yes people will tell you the public system is just as good (they are better in a dire emergency), but my husband could stay with me for the whole 5 days (wasn’t turned out at a certain hour) and the care was second to none.

      You can call up different Obs and ask them what their out of pocket costs are. Add $500-$1500 for an anaesthetist (c section or epi), $200-$500 anaesthetist assistant and your hospital excess.

      • asianbargain on 24/06/2019 - 07:15

        Thank very much. Will check out

    • morse on 23/06/2019 - 22:15

      Also not OP, but this article on the topic is worth reading.
      https://www.abc.net.au/life/the-cost-of-childbirth-and-the-h…

      I'm going private in sept. Made the decision based on working at the local public hospital, knowing the maternity unit is very busy, wanting to have my prenatal care from an obstetrician (rather than midwife) and the option to stay in hospital longer than the essential period if wanted.

      If you have private insurance, the main fee is the obstetricians management fee, this varies significantly, I'm paying $2000. The rest of the costs are the insurance excess, anaesthetics and paediatrician fees and potentially some medication costs. The birth classes are $200, instead of free in the public system.

      • asianbargain on 24/06/2019 - 07:16

        Thank for the link. Will check out

    • greatlamp on 24/06/2019 - 19:13

      You should consider what it your local public hospital.

      Major public hospitals will be sharing clinicians with private hospitals, and have rapid access to an obstetrician and equipment should anything go wrong.

  • echineon on 23/06/2019 - 16:37

    My guess is the Doctor clicked on the drop down menu and selected wrong while someone interrupted him. Some people don't know to use TAB for switching between boxes, or type the first letter or arrow to select. Literally anything could happen, a fly flew pass Doctor face and he used a magazine to slap it on the desk and his pen from his pocket dropped on the up arrow on the keyboard and now your baby is female. But NOOOO, the most likely scenario is the Doctor hate you and want your money hence you need compensation. Congrats you guessed right!

    • [Deactivated] on 23/06/2019 - 16:40

      This Gentleman ticked the Sex as "Female", Hand written Genitalia as "Female", Testes fully descended R/L as "NA(Not applicable)".

      What drop-down menu?

      • Ti-au on 25/06/2019 - 22:06

        Some hospitals or doc offices may have something called a computer which means you don't have to hand write it.

  • Meercat on 23/06/2019 - 18:58
    +3

    I work in a hospital in medical wards as well as in a maternity/labour ward. The midwives and the obstetricians work hard to make sure that your wife and baby are both safe whilst they are at the hospital. The blue book and the patient sticker you are concerned about mean very little outside of the clinical setting. I would understand your point if the mistake was on the birth registration forms where it has the potential to cause headache. I don't know why you are so upset about this. Frankly, trying to get compensation for something so minor is a little overboard and it wouldn't get you too far I am afraid. I have seen many parents come in pregnant and walk out empty handed with no baby. Be thankful that you have your baby and move on.

    • netjock on 23/06/2019 - 20:47
      +2

      Be thankful that you have your baby and move on… great attitude.

  • No ONE on 23/06/2019 - 19:32
    +1

    Did you just assume your daughter's (ahum Son's) gender?
    pun intended.

    • Ti-au on 25/06/2019 - 22:07

      hahaha!

      Doc was just looking into Op's Sons future.

  • netjock on 23/06/2019 - 20:49

    I wonder if there is more clerical stuff ups in private or public? For real not people taking the assumption you pay then it MUST be tops.

  • herecomestheoost on 23/06/2019 - 20:51
    +3

    Why is anyone assuming this child's gender anyway?

  • [Deactivated] on 23/06/2019 - 21:09

    I have to say as I read the OP I was thinking to myself this will be an awesome 21st story.

  • gimme on 23/06/2019 - 22:28
    +3

    Bunnings gave me the wrong shade of blue for the kid's nursery. FML I need some compensation.

  • alienurbanite on 23/06/2019 - 22:52

    Not to belittle what happened, but I've worked as a doctor in many public and private hospitals in Victoria and trust me, I wouldn't worry too much about the documentation error. It's true, it's a mistake and mistakes shouldn't happen but they do happen. Especially when tens of thousands of deliveries are done each year. I wouldn't judge this particular hospital or private care based on this mistake whatsoever because there are way bigger issues to worry about when you are having a child. Whether you went to a public or private hospital doesn't matter… this type of mistake happens regardless of what you pay. When selecting a hospital to deliver a baby, really consider clinical consequences… that's what you're paying for.

    There's a reason that the vast majority of doctors in the know go to 2-3 specific private hospitals in each city and its not because the rooms are nice.

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