What are some medical errors potentially made by OB/GYNs?

OB/GYN stands for obstetrician and gynecologist and is a type of doctor that women visit for many reasons, whether they are expecting a baby or going for an annual checkup. Like any medical professional, OB/GYNs can make mistakes while attending to their patients.

These are some of the medical errors that OB/GYNs in Illinois may potentially make.

Misdiagnosing a condition

Diagnosing illnesses and other medical conditions are primary tasks that doctors perform, so it is important that they do so correctly. However, there is still room for error. For example, an obstetrician may look at ultrasounds and fail to notice if something is wrong with the baby, or a gynecologist may neglect to perform STD testing even though there are symptoms present.

Making a mistake during a procedure

OB/GYNs may also make a mistake while performing a medical procedure such as tubal ligation. Some errors that doctors can make during surgery include performing the procedure in an incorrect area of the body, leaving a surgical tool behind in the body and performing the incorrect procedure altogether.

Injuring a baby during delivery

Because newborn babies are so small and delicate, they are more prone to injury if mishandled by a medical professional. Delivering babies is one of the main duties of obstetricians, and they need to be able to monitor multiple functions to do with the newborn at the same time.

Whatever the reason for someone seeing an OB/GYN, the patient should be aware of the medical errors that those in the profession may make.