ComplaintsforGrowing Families Midwifery Service

• Initial Complaint

  01/31/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Unanswered

  More info

  I paid $3450 for the midwife to send me home with contractions 5 minutes apart and tell me to drink wine and take Tylenol PM. When the contractions were nonstop and back pain was intolerable, just a few hours later, I returned to the birthing center to be left ALONE in a room to labor through the night while the midwife SLEPT! I CANNOT recommend this business to anyone! My daughter ended up in NICU for a week. I STILL have nightmares about the joy they stole from what is supposed to be a beautiful memory. Don't let this happen to you. She almost killed us.

• Initial Complaint

  08/17/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Hired ***** as midwife for natural/homebirth. Paid $5700 upfront on 10/28/21. At end of pregnancy was nearing 42w (4/8/22) & homebirth is illegal in Florida past 42w. Was looking like Id have to forego homebirth. ***** believed I should be induced at 42w, but I wanted my labor to begin naturally. Decided to seek 2nd opinion/possible transfer of care. Spoke to **** ***** of Modern Midwives Jax, said she couldnt help me. She then told ***** I had contacted her. (Would want to know if something could be done about this breech of confidentiality too). ***** then dropped me as client through text message same day **** responded to me, the day of 42wk. ***** never came to hospital, but contract says if client needs to go to hospital, every effort would be made to have someone show up. (Section 3: Transfer of Care After 35 weeks) No truly legitimate reason prevented her from providing what is stated in contract. Never received care I wouldve wanted during 38hr labor/birth. Didnt receive 3day&6wk postpartum checkups. A major chunk of what we paid for. Contract discusses refunds in Section 10. Only discusses if client discontinues care, not if she, herself, does. More upset caused bc I was left with birth pool she loaned me. She never reached out to see if baby and I were ok until weeks later when she realized I had pool. Went so far as to ask if Id put it out so she could pick up. I did eventhough my request for refund was ignored. Didnt pick up for 25days. Was newly postpartum. Shouldve been focused on baby, not worrying about this and jumping through hoops to get refund. Told her what she did was extremely upsetting as first time mother. What could be done to make it right? Felt it would be fair to get refund. Was ignored. Contacted her again, asked for refund & quoted her contract, was ignored once more. Got 11 ~1 hour appointments. Similar profession might charge $150 for a 1 hour session = $1650 for 11 appointments. Asking for the remainder, $4050 refund.

  Business response

  09/14/2022

  Dismissal of client care and refund request:
  The client was dismissed from the remainder of her care after risking out of licensed midwifery care. The dismissal was due to continued erratic behavior, increasing combative behavior, and my need to protect myself and my practice from her continued request to practice outside of the scope of my care. 
  I continuously felt pressure to compromise my ethics to appease the client. I always had to be very cautious with her emotional state. Her partner seemed to neutralize the situation in the beginning of care. Toward the end of care, as there were no options left for compromise, the patient grew increasingly distraught and continued to show signs of the distrust she had in my suggestion, professional knowledge, and choices that I had to make as a midwife. 
  After transferring care, I decided the safest option for me was to dismiss her from any follow up care. 
  
  
  According to the state regulations: (5) The midwife shall refer a patient for consultation to a physician with hospital obstetrical privileges if any of the following conditions occur during the pregnancy: (e) Gestational age between 41 and 42 weeks.
  (7) If the conditions listed pursuant to this section are resolved satisfactorily and the physician and midwife deem that the patient is expected to have a normal pregnancy, labor and delivery, then the care of the patient shall continue with the licensed midwife.
  
  
  My practice refers women to be seen by the hospitalist (on-call physician)  on staff at St. Vincent’s southside. This is where their care will be transferred when the client risks out of midwifery care. There are currently no physicians that are willing to allow women to continue past this gestational age nor are there any physicians that would agree that the client can return to licensed midwifery care for a homebirth. Therefore the client risked out of care. 
  
  
  As for the manner of the dismissal, I felt I had to use the most efficient route of delivery giving the time restraints. The client had already risked out of care and I felt that I needed to give the information in writing, that I would not provide her with the emotional support, as soon as possible. 
  
  
  In the “continuity of care” portion of the contract it states “when possible, a practice member will remain with you through whatever situation “ in case of a transfer. The client’s distrust and combativeness created an unsafe environment for myself or any staff member to attend her birth as a emotional support person. Therefore, I felt it was impossible to remain with the client. Once the client was dismissed from care the service of the follow up visits are no longer available.  
  Every client signs the contract in the beginning of care, it is discussed before signing. The refund section of the contract is clearly stated. 
  
  
  Section 10: Refunds
  If you decide to leave the care of the Growing Families
  Midwifery Service prior to 35 weeks and have prepaid your account, a refund, less the non-refundable retainer and all
  amounts owed for care provided (see Sections 2, 3 & 4), will be issued within 60 days. There is NO REFUND of fees paid to the practice after 35 weeks of pregnancy regardless the reason for client discontinuation or transfer of care or birth outcome.
  
  
  The former client is arguing that she should be provided a refund because her discontinuation of care was not “client initiated”. This is not what is stated in the refund section of the contract. “Regardless of client discontinuation” refers to discontinuation of care, whether that be initiated by the client, midwife, or the client risks out of care. 
  
  
  This is the only dismissal in my practice in 12 years. I was unsure on whether I should even reach out to the client after the dismissal. I feel I possibly should have kept a non contact relationship to avoid any hardships to myself and to the client. I will be revising protocol for the future to ensure this process is safer and more manageable for my practice. 
  
  
  Deepest Regards,
  ***** ******* LM

  Customer response

  09/19/2022

  [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]

   Complaint: ********

  I am rejecting this response because:

  I was originally asking for a partial refund for the services not received, but now I would like a full refund of $5700 as I am extremely unhappy with the service and the way I have been treated.

  1) I did not risk out of Midwifery care. According to the state regulations that *****, herself, provides in her message, I was supposed to consult with a doctor. If everything was determined to be healthy, I could continue to receive midwifery care. The same day she dropped me as a client, I went to that very hospital, St. Vincent's Ascension for a non-stress test to monitor my baby. They said the heartbeat looked great and was strong. A doctor would not have (and did not) turn me away because I was 42 weeks pregnant. I was never given the opportunity to consult with a doctor before she dropped me from her care.

  2) She "always had to be very cautious with my emotional state" - When should any professional working with pregnant women not be cautious about the women's emotional states? That is part of their job. Emotional stress is harmful to the baby and mother.

  3) The mentions of my behavior being combative and erratic are complete and utter lies. This is an assassination of my character. No proof exists to support these claims because they are absolutely untrue. I was somewhat firm in holding my stance on what I wanted to do with my body/pregnancy, but I was never once disrespectful let alone combative/erratic. I brought information backing up my stance to her in a calm and polite way. Just like I will do here. You can view more on the choices women should be given regarding this situation and the proper protocol for termination of care according to the National Institute for Health Research, Ontario Association of Midwives, and The California College of Midwives here:

  40 Plus Weeks Leaflet:
  *************************************************************************

  When Your Pregnancy Goes Past Your Due Date:
  ******************************************************************************************

  Midwife & Client Responsibilities and Rights:
  ***************************************************************************************************

  Termination of the Midwife-Client Relationship:
  ***************************************************************************************************

  I sought a second opinion/possible transfer of care because she would not take this legitimate evidenced-based reasoning into account.

  Furthermore, she has not discussed the fact that a midwife I got a second opinion with breached confidentiality and told ***** that I was possibly seeking transfer of care. Her dismissal text states that is part of why I was dropped as a client. This is a violation as they discussed my situation without my permission. I have a right to a second opinion, I have a right seek alternative care, and I have a right to privacy and confidentiality. ***** was not respectful of this.

  4) While a text message is a fast form of delivery, this is an irresponsible and unprofessional means of communication. What if the text didn't go through and I had not recieved it at such a critical time? I was so close to giving birth. If a provider is going to dismiss a client, this is why they need to give the patient sufficient notice and put it in writing through certified mail.

  5) Continuity of Care - She fails to mention the entirity of this portion of her contract. The contract states:
  "...when possible, a practice member will remain with you through whatever situation develops and continue to offer support and will continue to care for you through your 6-week postpartum period. This clinical, emotional, and physical support and advocacy at the hospital can be very valuable and having an experienced person there who you can trust makes the experience much more congenial. Should YOU choose to terminate this Continuity of Care agreement with this practice, there is no refund of the professional fee."
  Clearly, she knows how important this is to her clients or it would not be in her contract. She was no longer medically responsible for me since I was going to the hospital. There was no legitimate legal reason she could not show up and provide me with what is stated here - support at the hospital and postpartum care. Again, the fact that she states that I was combative with her and that is the reason she could not is an absolute lie. And even if I was, I was 42 weeks pregnant. What possible threat could I have been to her? I would never risk my child's safety to be combative. What mother would? If I was combative, why would she claim in her dismissal text that she truly cared for us?

  6) Refunds - As she mentioned, I was the only one she ever did this to, so why would the contract be addressing this? All throughout the contract it refers to refunds in the sense of client discontinuation. I paid for services, I wanted what I paid for, but was denied those services for no legitimate legal reason. This is Breach of Contract. It also states that if *you* chose to terminate the Continuity of Care agreement, there are no refunds. So what about if she terminates it for no legitimate reason? I was made aware that another business, Jacksonville Community Midwives, allows their clients who go past 42 weeks to monitor the baby multiple times a week. If all is well, then the Midwives allow the client a homebirth and assist her. So clearly, it is not dangerous to do this and was not beyond the scope of her care as a midwife. I did not choose to terminate care, I had no part in it. If ***** not giving me a refund is lawful, then what prevents every midwife who is paid in full from dismissing their clients so they can keep the money without having to work for it?

  7) If she claimed to care for us like I mentioned above and did this because she was so worried for my baby's safety, why wouldn't she reach out to me afterwards to see if my baby was born alive and healthy and that I was ok after building a relationship with us over many months? If she thought I was such a threat to her, why would she reach out to me weeks later to come to my home and retrieve her birth pool from me? Why would someone want to go anywhere near a person that was so combative with them and had erratic behavior? Would a violent person like that hold onto the birth pool for 25 days and give it back when they truly had no reason to do so after the way they were treated? Because that is what I did.

  And now my character is being attacked and lies are being told about me by a health care provider that was supposed to have my best interests at heart. But even so, I am speaking in a calm, respectful manner. The same way I spoke to *****. For all these reasons, I reject her response.

  Thank you for your time,

  **** **** 

  Regards,

  **** ****

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