Dr Clement Chan/Miscarriage

[BLWC]

I recently had a very traumatic experience with my first pregnancy and I wanted to share it with others so hopefully they can avoid the same thing.

At 7 weeks I had some mild pain and spotting and was told by my GP that I had a small risk of miscarrying. She wanted me to have a scan as soon as possible and the only OB available at the time was Dr Clement Chan. He performed an internal ultrasound (very rough and painful) which showed that the embryo was smaller than it should have been and he insisted on admitting me to hospital as he could not tell if my pregnancy was ectopic. I was beside myself with worry and did not receive any sympathy or reassurance from Dr Chan. He wanted to monitor my HCG levels over the weekend so I spent an agonising 3 days in the hospital waiting for the results.

Dr Chan visited me three times a day for no more than 2 minutes at a time, at a cost of $1600 per visit. On the second night in hospital (after no more pain or spotting) my pregnancy symptoms had started to disappear and I asked to be allowed to go home to miscarry naturally, if that was what was going to happen. He told me I was being "irrational" and that I should trust science instead of getting carried away by my "emotions". I felt that my opinion and instincts were not important to him at all, in fact, he tended to address my husband and ignore me whenever we were both in the room.

The blood test results on the Monday showed that my HCG results were not rising quickly enough (according to Dr Chan, however I have since learned that they were at the lower end of normal) and the scan showed that the embryo was still small. Dr Chan diagnosed a non-viable pregnancy and recommended a full suction evacuation (D & C). I was given the option of tablets but he said that I would need to stay in the hospital until they took effect which could take "up to 10 days." He still refused to let nature take its course as he believed there was still a chance it could be ectopic. Surely this is something a qualified and experienced OB would be able to recognise? In the end it was not ectopic at all. Unfortunately we think Dr Chan knew this all along but wanted to get as much money out of us as possible.

I was given medication to basically induce labour followed by the D & C procedure. I was in extreme pain and was having contractions after the surgery and all he prescribed was paracetamol. I had to wait an hour for the nurses to contact Dr Chan and have him prescribe morphine. Dr Chan came by the following morning and ordered more blood tests to make sure my hormone levels were lower. I was told he would be back to give me the test results and counsel me on what had happened but we were discharged and never saw him again. The whole experience cost us $50,000 HKD and it will be a while before we can afford to try again.

I had no information on what had happened or support for what I had been through. I still don't know what went wrong with my pregnancy and I am disgusted by the way I was treated by Dr Chan. As a first-timer I expected that I could trust the doctor's advice but now I know that I should've asked for a second opinion and trusted my instincts more.

My advice to any first-time mum out there considering using Dr Chan would be to question everything and always get a second opinion if you have any doubts.

[Dink]

BLWC. You poor thing, that sounds like an absolutely horrendous experience... I hope you will be able to put it behind you with time. Wishing you all the best.

[hope2008]

thanks for sharing this!
I can only confirm with my experience that doctors here in Hong Kong seem to have an answer very quick to anything. I went to see an OB and in only 15 minutes with some very basic questions she diagnosed me with POCS and I left with a feeling like the world fell apart. Turns out that this was very premature and you need much more test to make a statement like that.
I also got the feeling they want to get to the next patient and that individual cases don't exist for them. they forget that each body and each woman is different.
anyway, I learned my lesson and will always get a 2nd and 3rd opinion.
put this episode behind you and think positive, think to the future because this will surely bring you a healthy baby soon again.

[louloute]

I am really sorry to read what happened to you.
It is very courageous to have spent this time to share your experience with us to avoid others to live the same.
Maybe you can consider sueing the doctor for not having done a proper job.
Hope you'll feel better soon

[Shenzhennifer]

I am so sorry that this happened to you. I am so shocked to hear all that went on. It`s disgusting.
It`s amazing what we can let happen when we are vulernable and trusting. Shame on the doctor and hospital.
I also had the terrible experience of an unwanted D&C, about 5 months before I became pregnant with my now 4 week old son. Put it behind you as fast as you can.
But I would hope you will be speaking with a lawyer.
By the way, if you have HKID then having another baby will cost you very little. Don`t let that stop you.

[goodbye kitty]

I'm so sorry to hear about your recent experiences. I genuinely think that you have grounds to make a formal complaint in this instance. On the other hand, I wonder if it would be better for your recovery to try to forget you ever met Dr Chan.

Good luck trying again. As shenzhennifer said, you can always go public and not have to fork out for treatment. It's also understandable if you need some time before trying again after such an awful experience.

[MilkMonster]

What a horrible thing you went through!! I'm so sorry that you had to go through something like that and I am sorry you lost your pregnancy (hugs).

[jaz1311]

I am so sorry to hear that you have gone through that. Its really very brave of you to share it with us. Please try to put it behind you, I know its hard. I had a miscarriage in 2007. But now I am a mother to a 3 months old.

You should really consider writing to the medical council here in HK to report about the doctor.

I am also new to HK and I met a very patient and kind OB. He is really what I call a OB with heart. Due to my medical complication he actually refered me to QM and yet he was still willing to follow up my case when he knows that in the end he would not deliver my baby.