Woman doctor sues own ob-gyne over baby's injuries

MANILA, Philippines - A obstetrician-gynecologist is facing charges filed by another doctor whose child allegedly suffered brain injuries when she reportedly did not immediately attend to them when the complainant gave birth in 2008.

The Quezon City prosecutors’ office recommended the filing of charges of reckless imprudence resulting in multiple physical injuries against Dr. Patricia Martinez.

The case stemmed from the complaint of a woman, Dr. Michelle Anne Noblejas-Mangubat, whose child experienced swelling of the brain and seizures. Mangubat, a former school physician, said Martinez arrived late on the day of her delivery and that a caesarian procedure was not immediately performed on her.

“The failure of the respondent Martinez to be physically present to enable her to personally evaluate the conditions of her patients (mother and child) so that she could have decided more promptly and accurately, considering that two lives were at stake, are acts of reckless(ness) for which the said respondent should be held accountable,” said Assistant City Prosecutor Ferdinand Baylon.

Mangubat was brought to the delivery room at the Philippine Children’s Medical Center on Jan. 22, 2008. Dr. Alma Cempron, who was on duty, was the one who attempted to deliver the child through “fundal maneuvers.”

But after several attempts, the heartbeat of the baby dropped to less than 100 beats per minute. The mother was told to breathe in oxygen and after the fetal heartbeat went back to normal, Cempron continued with her attempt at normal delivery.

Mangubat claimed she was never offered to undergo caesarian procedure until the heart monitor reportedly displayed no fetal heartbeat. It was then that an emergency caesarian operation was decided. Martinez reportedly arrived just as the operation was starting.

Mangubat’s husband claimed the baby’s body was already blue when he was delivered. The infant was later on diagnosed with cerebral edema and suffered convulsions or seizures due to lack of oxygen in the brain.

Martinez said the operation was done not as a result of fetal demise as claimed by the mother, but done “in the hope of saving the baby’s life.”

Martinez also said she was caught in traffic, which caused her to be late in arriving at the hospital. She also said she was not informed that the baby’s heart rate had slowed down.

Baylon, however, said “the mere fact of her absence at a crucial time in the period of the baby’s delivery creates a reasonable suspicion that she had been negligent in her duties as an attending physician.”

“She could have easily predicted the probable time when her patients would deliver their babies, thus she should have made the necessary preparation,” the fiscal said.

Baylon said Cempron’s statement that Martinez “did not even inform her of the complainant’s medical records and had to rely on the patient’s own words is an indication of negligence or recklessness on the part of Dr. Martinez.”

Baylon recommended the dismissal of the charges against Cempron, saying her perceived undecisiveness in performing the caesarian operation was “understandable” because it was Martinez’s call as attending physician.