Skol v. Pierce Update: Doctor Fined and Placed on Probation
Tuesday, July 21, 2009 at 11:49PM
Chicago Breaking News reported yesterday that Dr. Scott Pierce, who was accused of mistreating Catherine Skol in labor with her fifth child on March 1, 2008, was fined $500 and placed on one year’s probation by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.
According to the article, Rush University Medical Center later disciplined Pierce and his clinical privileges and medical staff membership were suspended. In addition, Pierce “was ordered to complete classes on physician-patient communication and behavior, as well as continuing medical education courses. He must notify the agency of any complaint, dispute, arrest, civil action or formal or informal disciplinary action, and file periodic reports to the agency.”
Pierce resigned on February 18, 2009.
Skol’s attorney, Kathleen Zellner, was reported as saying Skol will proceed with her lawsuit.
Catherine Skol’s allegations against Scott Pierce in the Cook County civil lawsuit, Skol v. Pierce, are summarized as follows:
Pierce arrived at the Rush University Medical Center at 8:10 a.m. on March 1, 2008, and immediately asked Skol, “Did you call anyone before you came in?” When Skol told him that her regular doctor had not instructed her to call first, Pierce responded with words to the effect of, “By law someone has to cover for the doctor. And people need to plan. You should know better since this is your fifth child. You should have come in sooner at ten to fifteen minute contractions rather than eight minutes.” Pierce complained that he had to arrive in a matter of minutes but it had been over four hours since he was first called. His drive took approximately eighteen minutes.
Over the next two to two and a half hours, Pierce would not let the patient have an epidural or any other pain medication. He told Skol and her husband that the baby would be born in ten minutes, which he knew or should have known was false, given Skol’s degree of dilation. Even after the baby was not born in ten minutes, Pierce still didn’t let her have an epidural or any other pain medication, just letting her suffer all that time unnecessarily.
Pierce repositioned Skol in the stirrups so that her toes were turned in (pigeon toed) and her buttocks were no longer on the table. This positioning required Skol to support herself with her arms. Despite her repeated requests to be repositioned because her right leg was cramping, and she had two herniated disks in her back, Pierce refused and made her remain in this position until he left the room after the delivery.
Pierce would not answer any of the Skol’s questions and would interrupt her repeated saying “Shut up, close your mouth, and push.”
At one point during the delivery, Skol was in the middle of a very strong contraction when Pierce decided to perform a vaginal exam. Skol specifically stated, “No. Stop!” Pierce refused and performed a very rough vaginal exam causing Skol extreme pain.
Pierce proceeded to ask for a “hook” and break Skol’s water bag. Pierce told the other doctor present that the water bag broke spontaneously, without admitting that he artificially ruptured Skol’s membranes with a hook. Pierce again stated that the baby was going to be here in ten minutes.
Pierce told the Skol that she was probably going to hemorrhage and that the blood had better be ordered. At that time, the chances that the baby was going to be born in ten minutes were zero.
Skol was extremely frightened by the statements. Pierce specifically stated that both she and her unborn baby might die. Skol had experienced a stillbirth several years before which was very traumatic for her and her husband.
After the room was prepared for delivery, Pierce took a seat on a stool between Skol’s legs at her perineum and requested that the other doctor sit next to him.
Pierce then took a phone call from a resident on his cell phone. Pierce proceeded to talk at great length during his phone call about an abortion he was going to be performing that day. Pierce scolded the resident on the other end of the call for taking heart tones on a baby that the resident was about to abort. The conversation was overheard by everyone in the room, because Pierce spoke in a very loud voice.
Skol was shocked by Pierce’s statements and continued to feel fearful for her life and that of her unborn child.
Despite Skol’s request to see the fetal monitor so she could control her pushing, Pierce would not allow her to see it. When the nurse tried to turn the monitor so the Skol could see, Pierce yelled at her to stop. He said, “Do not help her.”
Pierce repeatedly said words to the effect of, “there is only one voice in this room and it is mine.” No one else was permitted to speak. When the Skol tried to ask questions she was again told to, “shut up, shut your mouth and push.”
Pierce, by keeping the Skol in the stirrups for at least 1½ hours, greatly increased her risk of deep vein thrombosis, in addition to greatly increasing her physical pain.
Despite Pierce’s representations that the Skol was dilated to eight centimeters at 8:15 a.m. when he left the room one hour after that, the other doctor checked Skol and said she was barely dilated to eight centimeters at that point.
Despite Skol’s statements to Pierce that her other children had been delivered when she was dilated to ten centimeters; he continued to insist she push, saying words to the effect of, “eight, nine, ten had nothing to do with it.”
Pierce continued with his cell phone calls, calling people “assholes” and telling someone to “kiss my ass.” He made comments such as “that stupid woman, she has no business being pregnant.”
Pierce inserted a catheter during one of Skol’s contractions, which was extremely painful.
Pierce threatened Skol with a cesarean section, stating, “this baby is coming out or it’s not” putting her in fear of either fetal distress or a cesarean. Pierce kept asking the nurse, “did you order enough blood? Because she is going to hemorrhage.” Skol found this terrifying.
Pierce caught the baby by her arm and leg almost dropping her, then held the baby up by one arm and leg for everyone to see.
Pierce proceeded to stitch Skol without adequate anesthesia and requested that Skol’s husband hold her down because she was squirming in pain. Not knowing what else to do, her husband held her down.
Skol repeatedly asked for pain medication during and after the delivery and the laceration repair. Pierce repeatedly denied the her any pain medication and was very rough when he cleaned Skol after the stitching, jabbing her with a sponge.
Pierce told the nurse that Skol deserved to feel pain because she had not called before coming in and that sometimes “pain is the best teacher.”
Hat tip: @lakeline
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Reader Comments (37)
discusting..... inhumane caregiver (and that is not the worst I have heard)
Horrifying. That poor family, especially with the mention of their prior stillbirth.
Really?! $500 and a slap on the wrist?! He practically tortures his own patients and gets fined $500!?
That is so disgusting. I am appalled.
This shows me that a much higher authority needs to look more closely at the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.
A big $500.00! What in the world are they thinking!
Here's a Sick Doctor that thinks that he's "Above the Law" and the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation just confirmed that!
Cathy Skol is not alone in suing Pierce either! There have been other suits started too.
Pierce belongs in a straight jacket!
Was/is there a Civil suit in this case?
Professional organizations are designed to protect their own (even when gvt regulated - EX: big pharma).
The only way to stop this abhorrent behavior is by hitting them where it hurts - in the pocket and the only way to do that is with a civil suit unfortunately.
honestly? this couple allowed this to happen to them! where was Mrs. Skols husband? My husband would've beat this guy to a pulp after I had a go at him after his first offense. And, baby #5? doesn't Mrs. Skol have a little experience giving birth? Ugh...both sides of this story disgust me.
Fyrestorm... yes! She's going to also proceed with the civil suit. There's a funny comment on the Chicago Breaking News article. "Sometimes a lawsuit is the best teacher." According to the allegations, Pierce told a nurse that he wanted Skol in pain because "sometimes pain is the best teacher." She, of course, needed to be taught a lesson to call the hospital first before coming in with frequent contractions.
Oy.
That is some f*cked up sh*t. Wow.
And now I will attempt to pick my jaw up off of the floor.
GE, I've read over and over how partners often feel a sense of disenfranchised grief in trying to support the laboring woman and being "good patients." My question isn't where was the husband but where was the doula or patient advocate in the hospital? If her husband was wrapped up in the moment trying to support his wife, he might not have had the clarity to also fight off the alleged violent treatment.
MM, they are allegations at this point, but there must have been some shred of truth if he was put on probation.
I read this story and I wonder if Skol and her husband had asserted themselves, as GE suggested, what would have happened then? With this extremely abusive physician would it have further aggravated him and pushed him to do something more drastic? I am well aware that there are many things that an OB cannot force you to do during the birth of your child, but I am also of the opinion that it some cases that leads to covering up their behavior and creating a "my word against theirs" scenario that doesn't always play in the mother's favor. This is all unfortunate, sad, and unnecessary. Why become a doctor in the first place?
I'd been wondering when we'd hear an update on this case. I can hardly believe what a lightweight slap on the wrist he got. Wow. And you know, it probably all plays into his sense of being persecuted.
I am appalled. Just appalled.
And what's more appalling is that I can't even bring myself to say (let alone think) that this is an isolated case--that, surely, there can't be more OBs out there like this.
This man (and others like him) has no business being around pregnant and laboring women. In fact, he has no business being around *any* patients. Period.
As other commenters have stated, a fine and a one-year probation doesn't seem like justice at all. And in all honesty, I'm utterly unconvinced that a class on "physician-patient communication and behavior" will change his own behavior whatsoever.
If only justice could be meted out turning the tables on him next time he's in pain...
Well, I'm glad that there was something official. Perhaps it's just a slap on the wrist, but it's better than nothing; and being on probation means that if there are any other complaints, they won't just be swept under the rug.
What the Skols' behavior in allowing this sort of thing to happen shows me is the power imbalance in hospitals, with doctors presumed to know what is right and to do it, even when it's obvious to everyone outside the situation that it is terribly, terribly wrong. It's easy to sit back and believe that we'd not let it happen to us, but it's easier said than done. Probably she was just thinking, "if I'm a good patient, it will be over sooner," or she was swept along in labor-land not necessarily totally in her logical, thinking portion of her brain; or just mentally "run over by a truck" with how he was acting -- dazed and confused. Yikes.
this is horrendous. the fine and the probation is a joke. he should lose his license and should not ever be allowed to deliver babies. actually maybe he should have to be in stirrups and have everyone disrepect him and prod and poke him!
I think it's sad that we have to say, "Well, at least it was something!" People pay traffic fines that are harsher than that!
This is so disturbing! Because that Dr. felt inconvenienced, he treated everyone around him abhorrently - the mother, her husband, the nurses, and the baby. Someone so uncaring should not be in practice. What about the oath - "First do no harm"? I am so glad this family pressed charges. Their voice needs to be heard!
Whatever happened to DO NO HARM??? This man is psychiatrically flawed, at best. This article needs to be sent far, wide and deep into the birthing community, especially where this happened. No one should give him business, that is the "best teacher" in my opinion.
I am horrified beyond belief.
I am horrified, but also disgusted that he was ONLY fined $500. That's about two minute's pay for obstetric care! You shell out more than that for a reckless driving ticket in this state!
Sue him, to cause him some pain and give the family some small restitution. Shame him on the internet, so that mothers who wish to do research and inform themselves can find out about him. Teach mothers how to be informed consumers.
Leave the govt out of it. Govt ALWAYS does more harm than good. We can use our own power to make sure people like this are out of business. Kudzu.com, HealthGrades.com, ratemds.com, drscore.com, etc.
I am going to take an educated guess that this was not a one time occurrence for this Doctor's behavior. I would bet he has a history of abuse of patients, nurses, residents, staff, or basically anyone who comes across his path. I am also going to take an educated guess that the nursing staff did complain and report this MD to administration for his unprofessional behavior. I am going to guess the medical team just turned a blind eye to him. I have rarely in my experience seen one MD confront another for poor performance and behavior. It is a pervasive culture in medicine to stick together at all costs.
I applaud Ms. Skol for sticking up for her rights, and I apologize to her on behalf of all the caring medical professionals out there that she was treated so inhumanely.
Why would the father not have done more to defend? Personally, I think it sounds easier than it is when a couple has labor tunnel vision. It's the institutional birth ride-- maybe just the birth ride, period. You're not necessarily supposed to be in your "right mind" and I think that goes for scared partners in stressful situations, too. I'd give the guy a huge break. Also, when women have a doula to provide labor support, fathers/partners are able to advocate.
That said, a lot of the don't-question-your-doctor mentality is culturally ingrained in the U.S. Read the following summary of the NPR show This American Life and keep in mind that one of the reasons the family who was handed the wrong baby didn't speak up was BECAUSE THE FATHER DIDN'T WANT TO EMBARRASS THE DOCTOR.
From This American Life:
360: Switched At Birth
On a summer day in 1951, two baby girls were born in a hospital in small-town Wisconsin. The infants were accidentally switched, and went home with the wrong families. One of the mothers realized the mistake but chose to keep quiet. Until the day, more than 40 years later, when she decided to tell both daughters what happened. How the truth changed two families' lives—and how it didn't.
Prologue.
Host Ira Glass introduces four characters: Kay McDonald, who raised a daughter named Sue, and Mary Miller, who raised a daughter named Marti. In 1994, Mary Miller wrote letters to Sue and Marti, confessing the secret she'd kept for 43 years: the daughters had been switched at birth and raised by the wrong families. This week's entire show is devoted to the story of Mary Miller's secret and what happened when both families finally learned the truth. (6 1⁄2 minutes)
Act One.
Reporter Jake Halpern tells the story of Marti Miller and Sue McDonald, the daughters who were switched at birth, and the many complications that came with learning the truth. Jake is writer whose books include Fame Junkies and Braving Home. (25 1⁄2 minutes)
Act Two.
Jake Halpern tells the mothers' sides of the story. At 69, Kay McDonald had to cope not only with learning that her daughter wasn't her own, but that another mother had known the whole time. And Mary Miller explains why she was tormented by her secret but unable for decades to share it. (26 minutes)
A family stole another baby because they were afraid to embarrass a freaking doctor. How would you like to be punched in the soul with that at 69 years old?
Unbelievable. And disgusting. So much for women's rights. This is like something from the Dark Ages. I think i might throw up.
The first thing that strikes me is what this says about the culture of the hospital, a culture I fear is all too typical. Surely this is not the first time this obstetrician has assaulted and abused patients emotionally, physically, or sexually. (Yes, that "rough" vaginal exam against the woman's will was a sexual assault.) Dozens of staff members must have witnessed incidents over the years, including, of course, however many nurses and other physicians were present at this labor. Yet no one did anything to stop this doctor or call him to account. The second thing that strikes me is what it says about the medical culture in general. Those responsible for internal discipline thought what happened to this woman was so minor that it demanded no more than a slap on the wrist and more training in communication. And the third thing that strikes me is what it says about our culture in general. In any other context this would have been a criminal, not a civil case. If anything, the punishment would have been more severe because of the abuse of authority. The man would have been tried and gone to jail.
GE: It's easy to blame the husband. However, when you are in an emotional situation and being abused, it can be so astonishing that you simply can't respond. If the husband had become abusive in return, I guarantee that horrible doctor would have had security escort him from the building. I imagine that having had a stillborn in the past, labor triggers some PTSD for both the mother and the father.
I agree with Reality Rounds. I'm sure that he's been written up by staff, but nothing ever happens. I've done it personally, only to be told later by other physicians that we were overreacting. I work in the OR, and they don't even believe the anesthesiologists, sometimes, when they back us up. I hope that the Skol family are successful in their lawsuit. Sometimes, it is the best teacher for a doctor.
So arrogant! So inhumane! Hope that the Skol succeed in their next lawsuit!
I must admitt that things like that happen very often here in Bulgaria. Don't think it is a third world country! No, we are an EU member for 2 years now. But the chances of a lowsuit here equal zero. Sadly my birth edned with an unecesarean because of the doctor's "sweet talks" (at 8 cm, baby and I in perfect condition). Firstly, she tried to frighten me by saying my baby was enormous and therefore afer the birth I was going to be sexually unadequate, my husband wouldn't want me anymore, because my vagina would be too wide. I asked her to stop saying that and our sexual life was my and my husband’s business. Then she told me: "Poor child, shame you have to raise a paralyzed kid, you know how difficult that is. It breaks my heart. He is going to get stuck in your small pelvis, you know that, don’t you". Then I gave up. My son was 4200 g, not a small baby, but definately not a giant. And I edned up with a PDSD.
Zozima, I am so sorry that your baby's birth was full of lies and deceit. You deserved so much better! You should not have been put through that. Ever.
I am horrified beyong belief. I have tears in my eyes and my jaw is on the floor. I truly don't think I've heard of or read a worse birth story. This woman was not only degraded as a patient and as a woman, not only was her trust of others and sense of safety violated, but she was SEXUALLY ASSAULTED. In fact, she was RAPED. A "rough vaginal exam after she screamed 'No" and inserting an object (hook for breaking waters) into her vagina without consent is fucking RAPE. If this doctor is not brought up on sexual assault and bodily harm charges I will be irate. A fine. A FINE?!?! You've got to be kidding me. This asshole belongs in prison for a long time, not to just lose his license.
I am absolutely disgusted, I can't even formulate thoughts that don't involve even more swearing and ill-wishing. Grrrr...
I feel nauseated. I wonder, where was the nurse. As nurses our first moral obligation is to the patient and her safety. We have policies in place to prevent this type of behavior. Supervisors should have been contacted and she should have moved up the chain of command until she found someone to take action. I sure hope this family has filed a civil suit to sue this doctor for all he's worth (which is not very much in my opinion)!
Aside from being horrified by this doctor's treatment of this mom (and baby!), I am fascinated by what drives a person to be this kind of obstetrician. What has to happen to a person to go after a birthing woman and her baby in such a hostile, rageful and abusive way? I'm serious. I don't believe such people develop randomly. Conscious or otherwise, there has to be a reason for such behavior, and such a horrible attitude.
Is he angry at/hating all women: that might suggest that he's angry at his mother--for what? Having him circumcized (i.e., assaulting his manhood, leading to a tit-for-tat attitude and a profession that pretty much gives him free reign to have his revenge on any unsuspecting woman who either chooses him as her doc, or by default)? Was his mother abusive to him? Did she have a difficult birth that traumatized him so that he endlessly visits his own experience on other mothers and their babies? Is he married? How does he treat his own wife? Daughters? Or is it merely a god complex born of a deep sense of inferiority and the need to have control over everything and everyone as a way of warding off fear?
I want to know what drives this behavior because it is all too common, and it has to be stopped! Passing exams shouldn't be the only criterion for allowing a doctor to practice obstetrics: to be performing medical/surgical procedures on women and babies at such a momentous and vulnerable time. What I know, as a prenatal and birth psychologist, is that our earliest experiences, including birth, are highly likely not only to contribute to our desire to be involved with birth, but are also likely to be triggered by birth-related experiences. Birth is a very powerful, if unconscious, imprint. Yet we never, ever screen for what potentially harmful "baggage" practitioners bring to the birthing room.