How not to do an ultrasound
By adamg - Thu, 06/19/2008 - 7:58am.
The Duck reports:
... When you led me to the examination room, you never once explained what you were doing. You pointed me to the table. You turned on your machines and squirted my belly with some sort of cold jelly. You didn't try and make me comfortable or even acknowledge why I was there and what you were supposed to be looking for. You asked me how much liquid I had had to drink (the directions were "come with a full bladder") and then told me my bladder was too full. You poked and pushed but otherwise ignored me. HELLO? That's my PELVIS you're pushing? HELLO? Can you see me? ...
And then the exam actually started ...
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ugh
I've got one scheduled for tomorrow. There are few things in this world that have the power to make me cry like a little girl, but ultrasound techs are among them.
Last time I was in for one, they gave me some bad news about a possible pregnancy complication in the most unhelpful, scare-mongering way possible, then stood around watching me bawl going, "What's the matter? Why are you crying? That's not bad news. You don't know from bad news. You should see the bad news we give people around here sometimes. You're lucky you're not the lady we saw in here yesterday."
wow, that's awesome.
I hope you escalated that one. Because, pull me in off the street and tell me what button to push and I guarantee I will figure out a way not to make anyone cry.
Me too
I got sent for an ultrasound after a mammogram a few years ago - already a scary situation, and the tech did a great job of making me as uncomfortable as possible. It started badly with a call telling me I needed to come in for the ultrasound and had been assigned an appointment, on a date & time that happened to coindice with a different appointment which I then had to cancel and reschedule.
During the exam, the technician remained silent while she pressed down hard in the middle of my breast, staring intently at the screen. Wordlessly she went to consult with the radiologist, leaving me alone and at this point deeply frightened and close to tears. And what was the reason for all of this mystery? Apparently, a cyst, which was only visible from certain angles. And of course, after this was explained, my fears were pooh-poohed by both the technician and the radiologist. Real winners.
How not to do an ultrasound
I am truly disturbed by the accounts listed here. While I am not trying to excuse their behavior, perhaps I can shed a clarifying light on some issues. As a patient, you deserve to be treated humanely and with dignity. We are, after all, human beings. In most cases, the sonographer (or technologist) is not at liberty to share any information about what we see on your exam. That being said, there are ways to comfort a patient without giving a diagnosis.
1) The facilities I was affiliated with actually gave the patient instructions regarding the quantity of water to drink, not just a "full bladder." This would have likely offered you better information. The full bladder actually improves the quality and accuracy of the exam. My apologies that you felt uncomfortable, and were not treated with care.
2) I would never give a patient bad news regarding her pregnancy. As I do not have any answers to the questions that would follow (what do we do now? What will that mean to my baby in the future? etc.) that information is better coming from your OB-Gyn. And regardless of what information you receive, this is YOUR pregnancy...very personal. No one has the right to tell you that you don't deserve to be upset about potentially bad news. Again, my apologies. I hope that things worked out well for your pregnancy.
3) There is nothing routine about breast ultrasound. Unfortunately, all breast "abnormalities" on mamograms are feared to be horrible flesh eating monsters by the general public. This is a very real fear, and should be dealt with as such. It was my pleasure to provide caring patient interaction with many breast patients. It is a joy to see their reaction when the find out it is a harmless cyst. It is painful when the news is not as good. All patients deserve respect.
We sometimes lose sight of the human factor in our professions. Long hours, technologist shortages, unreasonable on call schedules all contribute to the attitudes of sonographers. This is NO EXCUSE for bad patient care. You are the good guys, and I like to think we are as well. My apologies to all in this message who have been treated poorly.
Be happy and be healthy.
Rick