What does Informed Consent Mean? Does it exist for Black patients?
Unmasking Obstetric & Gynecological Violence
Anatomy of a Self-Hating Black Woman Part II: During my annual well-woman exam, my former physician tried to pressure me into getting birth control that I did not need. She did not inform me about any of the benefits about the course of treatment she was proscribing and suggested that I should get an IUD in case I had a one night stand the same day following my appointment. Her assumption of promiscuity came after asking me the racial identity of my sister who was an English teacher in Korea before COVID-19, thus one can reasonably conclude her asserting that I engage risky sexual behavior with strangers is based on a racial stereotype or perhaps she was projecting. She has not given me a reason to suggest otherwise.
Why would a woman who is not sexually active need an IUD when she does not present any health concerns that would suggest she would benefit from the device? Was this an upsell similar to when the guy who does your oil change tries to get you to buy a new air filter? I cannot shame anyone’s hustle, surely inserting an IUD I did not need would have been a billable service. Did she assume that I could not appropriately manage my reproductive powers? If so, then why? Her commentary struck me as odd and insulting considering that I have never been pregnant. She never asked if I had a partner or wanted to have children in the future. Why would you ask a brown-skinned Black woman the race of her biological sister? If a white male had done the same thing would they be able to avoid accountability in today’s climate?
Part II: What does Informed Consent Mean?
Mount Sinai West OBGYN — Outpatient |50 W 77th St 1st Floor, New York, NY 10024
Dr. Francis questioned why I had stopped using oral contraceptives and I noted that I am not sexually active, do not need contraceptives, and find oral contraceptive side-effects unpleasant. The physician insisted that there are many benefits to birth control other than the prevention of pregnancy but did not mention what those benefits were. She then crudely remarked, “At some point before 50 you are going to have sex.” without any thought or question of my beliefs, she never asked if I had been sexually abused or assaulted. Who I am and where I was in my personal journey as a woman was irrelevant, she allowed herself to just paint me with a broad stroke. I was not considered a full person. The physician counseled me about IUD options and made notes on the computer. Once I heard about the side-effects of worsened cramps from non hormonal IUDs I knew I needed time to weigh the pros and cons, I replied to her earlier remark, “Yes, this is likely, I’ll consider it in the future.” The physician sighed in annoyance. In a sultry tone, she said “If you left here today and met someone tonight, then you would be good.” I laughed and said, “Oh I wish!” thinking inwardly, I wish I was that brave, but the thought of randomly hooking up with a stranger gave me anxiety, maybe I grew up watching too many Lifetime movies. Some women are comfortable expressing their passions in this way and they have a right to do as they choose, for me it always felt too risky. I was in a long-term relationship that had recently ended at the time of my appointment. I was not trying to get to know ANYBODY romantically right away, plus COVID-19 had put a damper on socializing. After years of being comfortable and feeling safe with an older man that was from the city I was dwelling in and struggling to make it in all by myself, I was scared to date and oops now I was 30+ heading back on the scene. The dating game had changed and with the rise of influencers like Kevin Samuels I knew I was no longer considered a spring chicken. My “time” would need to be spent wisely if I wanted to be married and have biological children. No, I did not rattle off all of my business about being newly single to Dr. Francis, my error was thinking that another Black woman might “just get it”.
The physician continued to pepper me with questions about my sister and how she became fluent in Korean and mentioned that her daughter is interested in learning Japanese as she was lifting my arm. There was rapid fire questioning about my sister while Dr. Francis was squeezing my breast and lifting my nipple. I detailed my upbringing and travel experiences visiting my sister in Asia and how powerful learning a foreign language is for opening career opportunities. The medical assistant returned to the room for a few minutes during the right breast exam mentioning that her granddaughter loves K-Pop (music from Korean Boy bands) and then left. “There are Black people in Korea?” The physician said, I replied playfully referring to myself and my sister that Jamaicans tend to venture everywhere, but how my sister met other Black people while traveling in Asia and many were US military personnel. In fact, I told a funny story about my sister going to a Jamaican restaurant in Korea where a disagreement occurred over the pricing of the patties. “Oh Lord! Our people went overseas and showed themselves.” Dr. Francis remarked as she sat down on the small stool at the edge of the exam platform between my legs sliding in the speculum, it seemed like her mood swung back and forth between hot and cold. Despite my uneasiness, this was a familiar interaction to me. I had grown up reading Miss Lou’s books and watching Oliver Samuels from our culture. The source of humor for a majority of Jamaican comics is their ability to make us laugh at ourselves. Whether it was an official comic, my aunts, cousins, or friends from a similar cultural background, we poke fun at ourselves all the time.
Please Sign My Petition: https://chng.it/Cv27KJZY
Listen to Audio of Mount Sinai (Erica Rubinstein, VP Patient Experience) trying to convince me to do a case study after being humiliated and discarded by my physician: https://youtu.be/vesdfNDGO48
