Offended doctor cancels operation

Offended doctor cancels operation

If you happen to live somewhere in Klaten, Central Java,
beware when you go to Diponegoro Dua Satu hospital for some
medical treatment. If you are a surgery patient refrain yourself
from asking too many questions, especially if the doctor
attending you is Dr. P.

On Oct. 7, 2000 my mother was going to have a kidney stone
operation. In the last minutes before the operation, Dr. P wanted
to talk to some people representing her and I was one of them. It
is my habit to ask a doctor a lot of questions and on that
occasion I did likewise.

When Dr. P, a urologist and head of the hospital, compared the
X-ray photos of my mother's kidney stone, which were taken five
days prior to the day set for the operation, and those taken some
time before the operation, I, as a layman knowing nothing about
how to interpret X-ray photos, asked questions about the photos.

The dialog ran more or less as follows:

(There are two kidney stones to be removed, as shown in the X-
ray photo taken five days prior to the operation, but the x-ray
photo taken on the day of the operation showed that the position
of the stones had changed).

Question: Doctor, which part will be operated on?

Answer : This lower part. This will be cut open.

Question: What about this other one, doctor?

Answer: Well, we'll find it. We'll slit open a bigger area.
We'll find it. This is unusual. I don't know why this one would
move upward.

Question: How long will it take for my mother to recuperate?

Answer: Well, quite a while, considering she is already old.
Besides, the heart is swollen.

Question: Really, doctor? Is it true that her heart is
swollen? How to diagnose it, doctor?

Answer: Look here, the picture is not clear, is it?

Question: Doctor, I have heard that there is a pain-killer.

Answer: It depends on the patient. In fact, it can be harmful
to her nerves.

After giving this information, which was not satisfactory to
me, he said: " Okay, no operation".

We were all shocked. To make sure that I had heard correctly,
I asked, "Doctor, how is it now?" He said, " Just take her home
now." At that time my mother was already prepared for an
operation. Without any explanation, all instruments were removed
from her and she was taken to her room. All this made my mother
panic, obviously.

Then I asked the hospital officer in charge for the status
file of my mother but the request was refused. We also could not
get any information about how far my mother had been treated so
that a new doctor would find out the whole thing about my mother.
Worse still, we could not use the ambulance. In fact, it was idle
and we offered to pay.

I question Dr. P's professionalism. In his oath, a doctor
pledges to help even an enemy. Legally, this doctor has obviously
violated the code of conduct for the medical profession.

My mother is now being treated in another hospital. It has
been found that the left kidney no longer functions and must be
removed. She is now taking a blood transfusion because her
hemoglobin level is declining. Very obviously, Dr. P gave a
different diagnosis.

WULANDARI

Jakarta