Once more the maternity system in New Zealand is under fire in the Dominion post, with a couple of articles involving the death of newborn babies. In the first article, the newborn died from haemorrhagic disease (excessive bleeding) because the parents refused to allow their child to have vitamin K. Too much internet disinformation can [...]

I know it seems counterintuitive that the US, home of rabid, wall-to-wall lawyers, should be slow in providing medical discipline, but it is true. You may recall the case of Nadya Suleman, who had octuplets after her fertility “treatment”, despite already having six children (via IVF treatment) and despite still living with her parents. I [...]

Stillbirths are traumatic. I am a seasoned provider of terminal care, so the dying process does not phase me, like it phases many of my colleagues. Even so, the death of a baby is horribly unpleasant and even more so when the baby is stillborn or dies soon after birth. All that expectation of happiness [...]

Spam Journalism: The spurious use of sensational headlines to add spice to an otherwise pointless article. Well, half the headline is ok… DHBs, union clash over plan to axe 20 doctors Plans to cut 20 resident doctor positions at Auckland hospitals will increase the pressure on remaining staff and threatens standards of patient care, a [...]

New research on folic acid has largely dismissed the cancer concerns that led to the Government’s going cold on plans for its mandatory addition to bread. Ah yes, these would be the cancer concerns that every doctor and scientist (as opposed to journalist, baker  and blogger) said were blown out of all proportion and were [...]

Currently there is an ugly drama being played out in the Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal hearing in Invercargill. The drama revolves around the thoroughly dysfunctional relationship between an obstetrician and a midwife that lead to the death of a baby. In essence, the drama is a microcosm of the story played out nationwide. Since the radical [...]

I am glad to see some common sense prevailed in the case of pregnant Lithuanian tourist Jurga Skiauteris. The current immigration ruling appears to consider pregnancy of some sort of disease, purely on the spurious grounds that our maternity services are stretched. This is clearly complete nonsense as anyone on a tourist visa would attract [...]

It seems that the American Authorities are finally investigating the Doctor who implanted six embryos into (unemployed) mother-of-six (now 14), Nadya Suleman.  About time, guys. It is very clear to me that the doctor who implanted the embryos is operating far outside of normal ethical considerations. So far outside, he is on his own little experimental [...]

I find it hard to fathom why a woman with six children would require fertility treatment. Yet that is what was given to the woman who gave birth to octuplets this week. She has six children, including two-year-old twins.  I can’t tell you how appalled I am by the dubious ethics of this situation. Although [...]

Fertility clinics are wondering what to do with embryos they have in cryogenic storage for which they have lost contact with the original donors. These “lost” embryos are left after IVF treatment and are still technically viable. The clinics are currently storing them at their own expense and are at a loss as to what [...]