Doctor Injured Me During IUD Insertion and Lied About It On Notes Etc. [CO]

Location: Colorado

I will try to keep this brief. I’ve just put some things together today of events that happened in September of last year regarding my Mirena IUD insertion. My doctor, during the insertion, had the sounding rod slip while measuring my uterus depth and it shot all the way back and it injured me badly. I had my partner in the room and he witnessed that, while she was apologetic, she seemed very panicked and yet dismissive as he describes it. She just kept saying, “oh it’s ok this happens. We will just keep going” And she proceeded to insert my Mirena. I was in absolute blinding pain and despite numbing cervical blocker injections I absolutely felt injured. She hurried up and finished and left me with some snacks and a drink and some stuff to clean up as I had bled massively over the pad underneath me. It took me a while to get up.

I proceeded to experience the most excruciating, debilitating and awful bleeding and cramps of my life for the next 4-5 months. I have had a Paragaurd (copper) IUD (which is bigger) before that actually expelled itself about a year and a half before this and it paled in comparison to this. I bled through my pants several times, went to the ER twice for imaging because I was convinced the thing had to have shifted, embedded, something. Yet it was in the perfect spot and nothing was wrong. Though I was only ever getting an ultrasound and because she told me it was nothing to worry about, I didn’t mention it to the doctors. The entire time she was dismissive, said I was just “dehydrated” and sort of just blamed me while I was suffering.

I dealt with it, almost wanting it out but she kept telling me to stick with it so I did. It is now July, obviously and I am better but still get a lot of pain not even when I am in my cycle. Sex is painful. I was talking to my partner about it yesterday and just reminiscing about it and came to the understanding about how she harmed me and how she dismissed me. So I went and did some research and it seems the national guidelines say that if there’s any even suspicion that something went wrong regarding a perforation or injury, she was supposed to stop the procedure immediately and she didn’t.

Secondly, I went to go look at my chart notes in my patient portal. She did not note any complications to the procedure which I feel like was a lie. Thirdly, this is a doctor that was recommended to me by my long time best friend. We are both trauma survivors, she had just had her IUD put in a month before me so that is why I went with this doctor. (She has also had her own litany of issues with this doctor insurance/attitude wise as of late) I asked her if she would mind checking her notes just to see and it turns out there is not a single difference in our notes under the “plan” section. Uterus depth, same. Blood loss, same. All of the information seems to be completely copy pasted and not changed, Which, as someone who worked in the veterinary field- I understand the use of templates to cut short of time but the necessity of changing the info to match patients is absolutely required.

I am fuming. I really liked her. She is a non profit and while I think her heart is in the right place, I hate that she chose to protect herself. I could have been at a huge risk for infection and I suspect she really did hurt me but was afraid to mention the extent of it for fear of protecting her own self interest. I feel violated, betrayed and furious that I went on so long being made to feel crazy. I don’t know the extent of my possible injury but I do feel deeply it is the reason I was in so much pain. Do I have a case here? I would like to explore my options for compensation. This is purely speculation but for my own personal reasons I feel like she went on with the procedure because she gets kick backs for each IUD which is like $8k a piece. It is the same reason I believe she is nickel and diming my best friend over the IUD she said she was in network for but now refusing to submit correctly to insurance. Even though Colorado has a law that all birth control is free.

I will of course separate my facts over feelings once I have calmed down but I just need to know what my options are here. Thank you if even just for listening.