Should I complain about sonographer that did 20 week ultrasound?

[louisexemma]

Hi all,

So im going to be a first time mum and two weeks ago we went for our routine 20 week scan at Worthing hospital in West Sussex. During the scan the sonographer was very quiet and I kept asking if everything was ok to which he replied “yes everything is fine”. He then asked us to go for a walk down the corridor to hopefully move baby into another position - again I asked if everything was ok and he said yes. When we came back he was looking at the Euro 2020 fixtures on his computer. He then took more measurements and then hit us with that the baby had fluid around his heart, the posterior ventricle on his brain was measuring bigger than it should and his arms and legs were measuring small, all after repeatedly saying everything was fine. We were absolutely floored and totally distraught. He took us to another room which felt like one of those rooms where they tell you someone has died but wouldnt give anymore information of what it could be or what it could mean. A midwife came in and told us that we were being referred to a specialist consultant in London the very next day. We went home in floods of tears thinking the worst.

We didn’t sleep at all that night and the next day travelled to London to see the specialist. We saw a professor of fetal medicine who scanned me again and said there was absolutely no fluid around the heart, the posterior ventricle was measuring fine, his arms were fine and his legs were a little on the small side but still within range. So basically the first sonographers measurements were very much out. I had the NIPT test just to rule out any chromosomal abnormalities and had to wait 5 days for the results but that came back very low risk. I am still under the care of the specialist just to keep an eye on babys growth but we feel a lot more reassured that baby is ok.

Should I complain about the initial sonographer? Like how can his measurements be so off? Why keep saying everything was fine when it wasnt? Was his eye off the ball because he was too busy checking football fixtures? I know they have to be cautious but I feel like his measurements were not done properly and he shouldnt be putting a pregnant woman through that amount of worry and stress - especially when it turns out that everything was actually ok.

I don't think I would complain. He couldn't have started giving you bad news halfway through the scan - you said yourself that you became distraught. How could he have completed the scan if you became distraught halfway through? It does put the sonographer in a difficult position if you keep asking if everything is ok.

He got the measurements that he got, they gave him cause for concern, it's much better than he referred you on and you got the all clear than he just pretended he hadn't picked up on anything that worried him. It's often the case with scans that one doctor will think one thing and another will disagree, or measurements are a bit off due to babies position and so on, this kind of scenario really isn't unusual.

I wouldn't complain op- it sounds like he did everything right!

I am so sorry for the stress but it sounds like something came up that concerned him, he explained to you what he saw, and referred you onward for confirmatory testing- as per protocol. Sometimes it can be hard for them to get the right measurements- mine were hard because I carry so much weight in that part of my body!

All is well and he was just doing his job.

I am sure he was just looking at euro fixtures as a break- it is his job remember!

He did his job... 🤷🏻‍♀️
Why don't you just celebrate the fact that everything is ok?

It's a hard one I think.

They usually say at the beginning, they will be very silent and non verbal whilst they are doing the checks. Getting all the images is far more difficult than it looks and takes a fair bit of concentration. I went for a little walk and jumped around, grabbed an ice drink and got my whooping cough vaccine all within the "walk" time and then waddled back to the sonographers room. I wouldn't hold it against him for taking a quick break and checking the football results whilst he was waiting for your return.

As for his findings, I can understand how worrying it must have been for you to be told his concerns and be referred to a consultant, 24 hours of worry whilst carrying feels like a life time. But as you say he has to be extremely cautious, maybe baby was still in an awkward position creating a dark/light patch that concerned him or the measurements were just a fraction off (that could be down to bad position or other factors im sure) so the best option was to refer to be safe. I imagine the consultant machine is top notch and a lot clearer and precise along with the consultant who has been scanning for years and could identify a nail cuticle from 3ft away.

I truly do understand your worry, and I'm so sorry you had to go through the stress but knowing they are referring to be 100% sure is good.

I’m so sorry you had to go through such a difficult situation.

I wouldn’t complain. Not everything in medicine is black and white and sometimes people get things wrong or are unsure. He’s only human. That’s why the expert also scanned you. Would you have rather him not say anything at all?

Sounds like at first baby was just in the wrong position to begin with so he didn’t know there was a problem, and asked you to walk to help move baby.
Then re the wrong measurements, your own Body shape/size can effect the accuracy.
If you are Larger round the middle it can distort the images. I remember being told this.
Regardless, he got the measurements he got and referred you to make sure that you were ok and baby is ok. He did his job.
I’m sorry that you had a stressful time however

You could raise a complaint about the football results.
But then how would you know if he’d had a break that day? Perhaps they were very busy and that was his five minute wind down/give brain a rest/back ready to focus.
Difficult to say.

I'm sorry you went through this, but you should be grateful its all good news! What exactly do you want to complain about the sonographer???

In most cases, the sonographer will tell you that they will be quiet and they will explain things AFTER then scan. Maybe, because you were 20 weeks, he wrongly assumed you knew not the constantly be asking throughout the scan (your words) 'is everything ok????' They need to scan, check positions, measurements etc and its normal to do this in silence. He can't say mid way through 'oh hang on, something looks really off' without you being more concerned. The obvious thing is for him to say 'it looks fine' in the sheer hope you stop constantly talking so he can do his job, finish the scan and check the actual results!

Babies are still very small at this stage- the size of a banana, so a measurement a few mm out, or baby in the wrong position can easily change the results. The sonographer wouldn't have made up the measurements to be malicious or cause distress. He did the correct thing! Read the measurements and referred you for more specialist checks. Have you considered that the machine in Worthing may not be as up to date as the fetal medicine one- which is highly likely IMO.

I cannot see that the sonographer did anything wrong at all??? Best of luck x

Ut may have been difficult to get accurate measurements, hence him asking you to go for a walk around to try and move the baby.
It was probably quite off putting having you ask constantly if everything was OK. You should have let him do his job and then wait until the end. He's not going to tell you half way through the scan until he's tried to get several different views of the baby.
I would honestly just be grateful that everything was OK. Dont see why checking the football while you weren't even in the room makes any difference.

I’m sorry you went through this and I understand your upset but I get why he was saying everything was fine as you kept asking him before he’d had chance to take the measurements properly.
As a PP said sometimes they say they’re going to be quiet for a while which probably would have made this situation better.
If it was the other way around where he had missed large abnormalities then you’d be more likely to complain but he didn’t like what he saw so he sent you to a specialist which was a good thing as it’s best to double check these things.

Thank you everyone for your replies! As im new to all this I totally wasnt aware that its a known thing to be quiet all the way through a scan. Before this one i’d had the 12 week scan and 2 private scans and all three sonographers talked all the way through and explained everything as they went along, as did the specialist consultant.

Anyway like everyone has said, I should just count my blessings that everything is ok.

Thanks again x

OP, it was a really stressful event so I can see why you are questioning if he was not performing his job properly. However, he had concerns and was right to get another opinion based on what he could measure on the day. It sounds like you feel more reassured now, but the stress of the event is still on your mind.

Sorry you went though that op.
I went through it too - sonographer very quiet throughout, asked their boss to come in, then ushered to a side room for a midwife to tell us what was found and what it meant. Dreadful experience that I wouldn't wish on anyone.

Sorry to hear this. Our sonographer talked all the way through saying “this is baby’s heart, this line here shows there is separation between the ventricles” etc (I probably got that wrong but it was something like that!) then told us about the baby’s spine, brain, stomach, nose and lip etc. Silence would make me nervous too. I think he was right to refer his concerns though and I’m glad it looks like everything is ok with your baby.

Glad to hear everything is okay for you. I don't think the sonographer did anything wrong. He is concentrating and needs to focus. Him checking the football scores is also irrelevant. Whilst you were out of the room, would you have preferred he stared into space?

I wouldn't complain. Seems like maybe your sonographer was being overly cautious and that in my book is a good thing. Thankfully everything was good.

Good luck

It is a known thing for a sonographer to be quiet, at an anomaly scan especially, OP. They need to concentrate on ticking off all the measurements and if the baby isn't in the right position, this can be difficult and often takes several attempts. I had 3 MCs before and every time something was wrong, they would not say this immediately, but at the end of the scan so they could complete it with focus and be as sure as they can be of what they told you. I remember in this pregnancy my 20 week sonographer was super quiet and only dropped some numbers to note for about 20 mins, then she relaxed and happily talked us through the findings. People concentrate in different ways, they need to do their job and usually time for questions is after the measurements are done.

If the sonographer was concerned it's a good thing you had further checks and all is ok. If you're saying he was distracted by football and not taking measurements properly then that's a different story. He should be focused on your scan. I'm not saying he was perfect and I'm not trying to minimise your concerns either, it's just very difficult to say what's happened without being there.

Try not to worry too much and best of luck with the second half of your pregnancy

I would complain. We let the NHS get away with being shit too often. However, most pregnancy care on the NHS is woeful. If you think that was bad, prepare yourself for the 7th circle of hell that is the postnatal ward where no one gives a shit about you.

Did your letter not mention that the sonographer will be quiet? Mine does. If not, you could perhaps feed that back - not as a complaint, but as something they might want to update to make it more useful?!

You’ve been lucky with your other scans - private ones tend to be chatty, but NHS ones are typically quiet while they do all the checks first.

I’m glad everything is okay.

When everything is going well they will chat a little more "oh there's the arm, this is this, that is that" but if needing to check carefully I can imagine them having to concentrate more. Also nodding a long everything is fine is better than saying "I don't know" He gave you the information when he had it.

Pleased everything is OK, sorry ypu have been through such a fright though.

I think you have been through a lot and are quite naturally feeling highly emotional.

I'm not sure that complaining will make your experience any better? Perhaps the sonographer had a poor bedside manner, I don't know, but I guess it seems to me that it's great your werw referred for specialist care.

Reminds me of my first pregnancy scan, he was on the phone to his builder the whole way through. So rude. I wish I had complained about that. When we are new to things we can check very unsure of whether the service was up to scratch or whether our expectations are unrealistic.

All the best with your pregnancy.

I wouldn't complain. He probably could have said at the start that he'll be quiet initially while reading the scan and that he'll explain stuff afterwards, but I don't think he did anything wrong.

No matter how skilled you are ultrasound scans aren't just something you can immediately read like a book, they need time to interpret them. He probably shouldn't have said everything was OK when you asked, but I guess he was put in a difficult situation, if he was to say no then obviously you'd be even more distressed and I'm guessing you'd still be wanting to complain.

I'd just be happy that everything is OK, sounds like he was right to refer you anyway which someone should always do if they have any doubts or cause for concern. Checking the football while you were out of the room is really a non-issue, what else do you expect them to do while waiting? Sit and stare at the wall?

I think I would complain. Being told fluid around heart plus other things when that wasn't the case at all ..he sounds incompetent.
Checking footy scores is not professional either.

Would you be as annoyed if he hadnt been checking football scores? Or would you have been thinking of complaining if he had been checking scores but then when he continued the scan, everything had been fine?
Seperate personal from professional. And be greatful all is well

All my NHS scans and Private scans sonographer has been silent apart from telling me to move etc etc till the end 😂

I like it that way tbf, means I don’t have to talk to no one while I’m concentrating on not wetting myself 😂

I think it was unfair of you to identify his workplace.

But I do sincerely hope it all goes well for you OP.