To think the NHS have made me infertile and to attempt to sue them?

[outpatient]

I had a miscarriage ten weeks no bleeding heartbeat stopped I then had a d and c surgery to remove the foetus and since then my problems started,

All I've had is continual early miscarriages - which I am reading is common issue after d and c surgery due to womb scarring.

I have even had corrective surgery I paid 5k for and the early losses are continuing in the same way, I've had scans that show I had adhesions which happen after d and c, things feel different since the d and c

I'm very angry, what do I do about this I'm almost certain my issues have been caused by the d and c surgery

No it doesn’t. You can pursue a complaints procedure without suing. Suing simply increases insurance payments and brings a struggling institution further to its knees.

I am very sorry for your situation, but I feel like grief is making you demand someone to blame. Have you had any counselling? By all means investigate what has happened but I think you’re way ahead of yourself wanting to sue at this stage. Start the investigation. Check your consent form and your notes.

I’ve just read that you’re going to have a look at therapy. I think this is a good idea. Continue to look at what has happened and why, but definitely seek support. If it turns out that it was or wasn’t medical negligence then you will probably want really good support as I imagine either outcome would be difficult.

OP it's very clear that you've made up your mind... The NHS is shit. They and the shit doctors in it are the reason that you suffered and recognised (and usually unavoidable) complication of your procedure. They're apparently also shit for not being able to fix something that thousands of pounds worth of private healthcare also couldn't fix. Unless this is a deliberately goady post I'm not sure what you hoped to acheive from it.

@outpatient your attitude, whilst maybe understandable to a point, is actually atrocious. You're looking to blame someone for your body not working as you want it to and sometimes there isn't any blame to be had. Stop wasting your money on the doctor's you clearly don't trust, or believe in and spend it instead on dealing with your grief and anger.

But if you knew you had had a history of any kind of medical condition, even something that you were told had normalised, why wouldn’t you volunteer it instead of waiting for them to ask a specific question or to comb through your medical records ? There are plenty of conditions that may be totally irrelevant to fertility/pregnancy but better to bring it their their attention to be considered and acted on/ruled out rather than leaving it as an unknown ?

The NHS has faced crippling and often utterly scandalous legal suits for years and nothing is changing. A family member was leading a piece of technology that could have massively reduced risk in NHS and no one would listen…he gave up.

OP, go and see a counsellor to help process the losses and the anger as that isn’t healthy for you to carry around at a time you want to try and conceive. Change your fertility dr, trust your instincts as time is precious.

Think about what you CAN change. Suing the NHS will make you more angry and suck out all the positive energy you could direct at fertility treatment. I’m very sorry you’ve been through all this.

Sorry for your losses.
I had a D&C after my first pregnancy due to missed miscarriage and went on to have two more babies. I don’t think you’d have a solid, evidential case, as before the procedure, you are required to sign a consent form that details the risks involved and as this would have been completed, you are agreeing to any complications going forwards.

Your anger is palpable across the screen and you are looking for someone to blame. It may be the d&c but I doubt it as it’s such a routine operation.

You also feel you’re being ripped off by the private clinic.

Maybe take a step back and take a breath. Your body isn’t doing what you want it to do, but you can’t blame it - so you blame the NHS, the D&C, the private doctor, the failure to monitor thyroid function.

It may just be just your body letting you down, especially if you have endometriosis as well.

Having read your whole thread now, therapy seems a really good option for you.

Right now you seem to have a really passive approach to your own health that allows you to then throw blame round left right and centre. Private healthcare, public healthcare, everything is apparently crap.

It is more effective to take responsibility and flag up your own health conditions than rely on other people asking the right questions. If you choose to simply be a passive participant then, yes, you get to blame other people and feel angry, but you don't necessarily get the healthcare you need.

It's a shame your thyroid condition, which had been successfully treated, then was re-triggered by your pregnancy. I don't see why that would be a healthcare failing? That's your body failing, if you need to find fault and failure. But perhaps that's the point of loudly blaming other people? Of course it isn't really your fault and simply sometimes our bodies become ill. These things happen. I hope you find someone who can help you get back to good health.

Hi OP, It sounds like you’re very angry and I do think therapy is a good place to go to - you need to process this grief.

it sounds very very difficult. But I think rather than finding someone to blame it’s trying to find a solution. This private doctors you’re continuously paying are you sure they’re the right person? Have you considered booking a double appointment with your GP or even writing them a letter. A factual letter then asking them who is the best doctor to speak to?

I wish you well in your journey. I also suffered from thyroid issues in pregnancy and to be honest I was the one to push for blood tests due to thyroid issues in the family.

It is possible to have recurrent miscarriages (I had 5 in a row and an ectopic pregnancy). Had my DD and haven't been able to get pregnant since.

I think your issue is going to be being able to prove a. that the D&C was done in a way that most other doctors wouldn't have done it and b. that the miscarriages are because of the negligent surgery. I suspect you'll have real difficulty in proving either of those.

I am sorry to hear you've had such a difficult time and the painful bleeds must be really hard to deal with.

I am just fed up of the NHS continuously failing all the time. I can't seem to get anything from it nothing at all, even today I wanted results from a blood test done over a month ago has to speak to approx ten people and I still don't have the results no one can find it

You are not wrong about this. NHS is so disorganised a lot of the time.

I also suffered from thyroid issues in pregnancy and to be honest I was the one to push for blood tests due to thyroid issues in the family.

This should be standard testing and having to "push" for basic healthcare is pants.

At 10 weeks pregnant there is very little medical involvement. Or do you mean for future pregnancies?

I don't see why that would be a healthcare failing? That's your body failing

No that's not how that works with thyroid conditions. It should have been picked up that she had this problem already (treated or not) and monitored and treated in pregnancy; she should also have been advised to seek early care and speak up should she become pregnant in future when being treated for it originally. Sadly she lost the pregnancy for whatever related or unrelated reason but it would have been very dangerous for her and the the baby otherwise.

Not good enough.

Am I alone in thinking the elephant in the room could still be what caused the first miscarriage which lead to the surgery? Thyroid being severely overactive even if medicated could still cause difficulty conceiving.

No, not alone, that was my point, sort of, badly made (I was too sleepy to be on MN).

It isn't. She could have been given medication to 'start' the miscarriage process. I had a missed miscarriage at a similar time and was told that because of the size of the pregnancy, a natural miscarriage (that isn't the right term but I can't think what it is off the top of my head) would be quite painful and I was already spinning due to being nearly 12 weeks and thinking I was 'safe'.

As you said it is a common problem
you will have signed a disclaimer

Previous medical history is one of the sections you complete on your maternity notes that you go through the midwife with at your first booking appointment.

Yes, I have a thyroid condition too. I know it's important. I wouldn't sit around waiting for my 12 week appointment to flag it up with someone even if it was fully resolved years before.

But if my thyroid went a bit haywire in the early stages of pregnancy, suddenly and without warning after years without any issues, and I hadn't gone straight to my GP for advice after the pregnancy test, flagged up my previous history, and asked my GP to run bloods straight away (we're just talking a few weeks here from knowledge of pregnancy to miscarriage, after all) then I wouldn't be blaming the GP.

The op seems to meet numerous medical specialists, none of whom tell her anything about any side effects, dangers, future complications. Not the endocrinologist. Not the GP. Not the midwife. Not the obs-gyn. Not the private fertility specialist. Not one of them on any of the medical issues.

No it’s the most likely scenario and OP is choosing to ignore this.

I understand it is just an incredibly sore spot for her but fuelling this witch hunt really isn’t helpful for her in the long run.

@outpatient medical negligence is very difficult to prove. You need to establish that the treatment you received fell below the standard which you could expect from a reasonably competent practitioner AND that this treatment caused the injury or loss complained of. You would need to obtain a report from a consultant obstetrician, based on your notes, which could cost £1,500 - £3,000.00. It would be their report which would indicate whether or not on a balance of probabilities the treatment was negligent. The issue of consent would be addressed. The issue of ‘foreseeability’ would need to be taken in to account as well - that is was it reasonably foreseeable that you would have developed infertility as a result of the d & c. The likelihood of that conclusion seems remote as this is an extremely common procedure, but that will be determined by a consultant on review of your notes.
In your case you don’t appear to have been diagnosed with the syndrome you now suspect you have. It appears to be a rare syndrome which can occur without any outside stimulus.
As above only a consultant obstetrician with a full review of your notes can provide an opinion for you regarding a possible case for medical negligence. Contrary to the opinions of many without experience in this area of law, medical negligence cases are not undertaken lightly. They are expensive to run, are more often than not extremely upsetting for clients and as NHS Trusts are reluctant to accept any liability, can needlessly drag on for years incurring more and more costs.
As others have suggested you should think about going through the complaints procedure first if you are unhappy with the treatment you have received. If you have access to legal expenses cover under an insurance policy or through a workplace union then you may wish to seek advice from a solicitor.

The NHS is useless (missed both me and DH being infertile for 6 years, was identified instantly when we went private) but you have ZERO proof of what you claim and suing wont help it get better it will make it worse.

After my MMC I was so zoned out emotionally they could have told me they where about to deploy me in WW3 and I wouldnt have heard them or registered but its common knowledge that ANY surgery for anything has risks.

You have several other fertility related medical condition and a history of MMC before this, honestly I dont think you have a leg to stand on legally as you dont have any proof and are just looking for someone or thing to blame (common and normal reaction to loss, maybe seeking out a loss group might help you emotionally).

Ashermans is 'rare', thats the key word here... when you here hooves thing horses not zebras, during my decade of infertility I also looked for every bizaare rare thing that could explain it, I was conviced at one point of another I had everything even Ashermans... turns out it is just boring old PCOS that the NHS refused to test me for as I'm (in the doctors word) 'not overweight with excess hair growth so theres no point'.