Andrea Q
Woman 'too fat' for birth
June 13, 2005
From: AAP
A PREGNANT woman says she has been told she cannot have her baby in a Victorian hospital because she is too fat.
The woman, only identified as Lisa, was told she would not be admitted to Werribee Mercy Hospital, in Melbourne's outer south-west, because her Body Mass Index (BMI) was 41.
A healthy BMI - a measure of body fat based on height and weight - is between 20 and 25 in men and women, and under 40 in pregnant women. A figure above that indicates a person may be overweight.
Lisa, who is 31 weeks into her third pregnancy, weighs 110 kilograms.
She told Southern Cross radio today that she had already filled out the paperwork and participated in a hospital survey before she was taken by a hospital staff member to a room to be weighed and have her height checked.
"She weighed and measured me, then sat down with her calculator and worked it out and just told me sorry you're 41," Lisa said.
She said she was told by the staff member she would have to lose 8kg if she wanted to have her baby delivered at Werribee Mercy hospital.
"I've only got nine or 10 weeks left in my pregnancy, basically that's drop a kilo a week."
Lisa told the staff member she could not do it and that she did not believe she had put on too much weight during the pregnancy.
She asked what would happen as she had already filled out the paperwork and alleged the staff member then told her they would tear it up.
Director of medical services at Werribee Mercy Hospital, Dr Peter Longmore, today confirmed the hospital did have a policy of not accepting pregnant women who had a BMI over 40.
Dr Longmore said the risks during delivery were significantly higher for women who were overweight.
"Women who have a high BMI usually have larger babies and that causes difficulty during delivery," Dr Longmore said.
He said the hospital did not have intensive care or neo-natal facilities if the baby or mother needed emergency treatment.
The only hospitals which provide neo-natal facilities are the Royal Women's hospital, Monash Medical Centre and the Mercy Women's hospital, which are all in Melbourne.
Dr Longmore said pregnant women with a BMI over 40 also had an increased risk of developing high blood pressure, diabetes and heart problems.
Lisa said no-one from the hospital explained the risks to her.
"Had I been sat down and said look Lisa you've got high blood pressure or you've had an emergency cesarean before or you're overweight, we don't want to risk you being here, lets send you to the women's (Royal Women's hospital) that's fair enough ... instead of turning me away."
Dr Longmore said he was not personally involved in Lisa's case so he could not comment on whether or not the hospital had explained the reasons for her being turned away.
"If the communication was lacking when she turned up then we need to look at that," Dr Longmore said.
"Obesity is a problem, it is important that patients need to know about the risks," he said.