my dr thought I was abused

[Chicago526]

This happend to my mother once, only she was the one the doctor thought was doing the abusing! This is what happened, according to my mother.

In 1977, my father wound up on a buisness trip all summer long, so my mom was alone with my brothers, aged 7 and 5, and me, just over a year old for almost three months straight (yes, my parents are still married... ). My brothers, being boys, managed two serious injuries EACH in the period of about a month. DB7 ran his bike into a mail box, needed stiches. Then just two weeks later, just after the stictches came out he was running in the boys locker room at the pool, sliped and hit his head on the edge of a sink and knocked himself out, and I think he needed stitches again. Meanwhile, DB5 managed to fall while jumping from bench to bench at the mall (mom was trying to get him to stop) and needed stiches, and again about a week later, somehow managed to fall in the garage and hit his head against the tool box. You guessed it, more stiches.

After a month of this, DB5 and I (about 14 months old or so) were playing in the rec room. DB5 had a large radio that had a flat, wooden top. According to DB5 I was on top of the radio and "dancing" to the music when I sliped and slamed my head agains the wall. I start screaming bloody murder and DB5 goes running out of the room to get mom, yelling "I didn't touch her, I swear!". Mom finds me screaming my head off and blood comming out of my ear.

She gets me to the pediatricians office, he looks in my ear and says I broke my ear drum (no big deal, just painful). He asks her what happend, she tells him. He asks her in a stern voice if she's sure that's what happened. She says yes. He asks is she sure she didn't hit me. That's when my mom got scared. He kept asking her, hoping she'd slip and change her story, but she stuck it out. She said for weeks after she was terrified that DCFS was going to come knocking at the door. She had adult witnesses to all the accidents except mine, so she knew she could prove everything, but it could have taken weeks to straighten out. The doctor never called anyone though, and fortunatly no more injuries happened that summer.

 

[mrsv98]

This happened when I was little! I am a red-head, very fair and bruise if you look at me cross-eyed. Plus, I needed glasses but no one knew it so I was always walking into stuff. I got pneumonia and wound up in the ER. The docs made my parents leave and then asked all sorts of questions about my parents hitting me!

I still bruise easily and so does DD, 6yo, so it always looks like the Friday night fights at our house!

 

[GADISNEYGIRL]

DH is a pastor, and we had just moved to a new church on a Wednesday. On Saturday, a week and a half later, we attended a carnival type thing with some people in our new church. They had kids (we didn't at the time), and the kids begged DH and me to ride one of those stupid tilt a whirl kind of things. Neither of us do dizzy rides, so this was our first mistake. Second, the kids wanted to ride WITH us. So DH on one side, me on the other, the two kids in between. I was really squished in there, and there was a dadgum bolt or something sticking into my back. We were the only ones on the ride, and the guy running it obviously thought it was funny to watch DH and me get greener and greener, so he kept it going FOREVER. When we finally staggered off, we told the family we had to go sit down. For a LONG time. The kids thought it was really funny.

That night, I realized that my back was all bruised up. Badly! From that stupid bolt sticking out.

The next night (Sunday), at church... remember, this is only our second Sunday in the new church...I passed out. That is something I do on occasion, and it is apparently hereditary, as my dad and his mother also did it. Anyway, DH had never seen me do this, and it is somewhat scary, I guess, because it appears that I'm having a seizure, though I'm not. ANYWAY. They called the ambulance, and took me to the ER. As the ER doctor was examining me, he was very interested in the bruises on my back. Kept questioning DH about them. Asked DH to leave the room, and questioned me. I don't think he believed our "it happened on a carnival ride" story.

I felt soooo bad for DH, he was so worried about me (I think I scared him to death!), and here's this doctor thinking he's abusing me...

I would be curious to know if these are standard questions now, for protective purposes!

 

[Maleficent13]

After I had given birth to my son and was getting ready to leave for home the nurse said that there was some things she needed to talk to me about when we were alone. Then she asked if I was being treated well at home, if anyone hit me ect. I had no bruises or anything that would lead her to think that, nor has that ever happened to me personally. All I can conclude is that at least at this hospital everyone is asked and maybe someone will actually come forward and get some help if they need it.
We have had some good laughs about it though.

This is standard policy at my hospital. They ask everyone...but they start their spiel with the fact that's it's policy...

 

[HERSEY]

I think I will have to start a file in case I'm ever questioned. I"m constantly getting bruised from my 50lb dog. He thinks he a rather small lap dog.

 

[PrincessKitty1]

The ER at the hospital where I work asks EVERYBODY if they have been abused. I mean, everybody--no matter how you were injured. I"ve read an article on Medscape that suggests all physician's and physician extender ask their patients this.

My sister's dog broke her nose (she was leaning over toward him and he leaped and hit her nose with his head) and her local ER practically insisted her husband hit her. Even after she explained what happened with the dog, the doctor said, "So, when your husband broke your nose..." She had to keep reminding people it was her DOG.

 

[teacherforhi]

Back in May of last year, I fell down the back steps of my house. My dad took me to the ER (nothing broken, thankfully, just really scraped up). The doctor INSISTED that someone had pushed me down the stairs and wasn't interested in the fact that I live alone and therefore, there was no one to push me down the stairs.

 

[malibuconlee]

After I had given birth to my son and was getting ready to leave for home the nurse said that there was some things she needed to talk to me about when we were alone. Then she asked if I was being treated well at home, if anyone hit me ect. I had no bruises or anything that would lead her to think that, nor has that ever happened to me personally. All I can conclude is that at least at this hospital everyone is asked and maybe someone will actually come forward and get some help if they need it.
We have had some good laughs about it though.

Yep, it's standard. I work in Medical Records at a hospital. Ours also asks if anyone has ever forced you to do anything sexually you weren't comfortable with.