Episiotomies–The High Cost Of Having Healthcare
As Rachel notes on Our Bodies Our Blog, the debate over the routine use of episiotomies during childbirth has been going on for quite some time and as this little finding makes clear, with good cause. According to a study in the June 2008 issue of Obstetrics and Gynecology,
“Women who had episiotomy at first delivery were older, more likely to be white, married, and have higher education and commercial insurance. These demographic characteristics were also all associated with having a private practice provider, and notably, 94.6% of women who had an episiotomy at first delivery were patients of private practitioners.”"
In other words, being demographically privileged may put you at risk for a medical procedure, and its possible complications, that is of medically questionable value. I’m not saying it would be a wise idea to throw away that insurance card that you are paying through the nose for, but one does definitely need to be aware of those extra ‘perks’. Read more at OBOB.
Filed under: Uncategorized, U.S. Politics, Women's Health
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