A Convo with SC OBGYN, Dr. Jessica Tarleton
WREN had the pleasuring of sitting down with SC OBGYN Dr. Jessica Tarleton in regard to what it’s like being a physician in South Carolina with the current abortion bans in place and as more are introduced into the House and Senate. We so appreciate her thoughtful responses. Read on to learn more.
WREN: In one word, what is it like to be an OBGYN in this climate?
JT: Cautious
WREN: How do SC’s abortion bans impact your experience as a physician?
JT: Abortion bans affect the every-day provision of pregnancy care in so many ways, starting from early pregnancy. Instead of diagnosing miscarriage based on clinical criteria we have learned in our extensive training, we’ve had to double down on collecting “evidence” that the patient truly has a miscarriage in case we are ever suspected of causing an abortion rather than treating a miscarriage. We then have to go through hurdles to prescribe the most evidence-based medication regimen to treat miscarriage, because it contains mifepristone, which has been subject to unnecessary restrictions because of its use in medication abortion. When patients or their fetuses are found to have serious health issues during pregnancy, the discussion of how a patient and their family wants to proceed with treatment has been taken out of our hands by the laws that restrict abortion.
Patients suffer after being told bad news about their pregnancies because their options are restricted. I suffer when I am forced to give patients advice that comes not from my medical judgement or a patient’s values, but from laws that dictate medical care. It might be one thing if an accidental infraction of these laws led “only” to fines or other minor punishment, but they come with criminal penalties, including potential jail time. There is a constant fear that if we don’t document enough or prove that our patients are “sick enough” to deserve care, that we could go to jail and likely lose our medical license. As someone who is looking for ways to stand up to say that these laws are unethical and cause suffering to our patients, I also feel extremely isolated. Some providers who treat pregnant patients are unwilling to offer any treatment, or even TELL a patient that abortion is an option, because of fear of legal and social repercussions.
WREN: How could you be better supported in your profession?
JT: I would ask that other reproductive healthcare providers, especially OBGYN physicians, speak up and stand up for what they believe. Abortion restrictions don’t just affect physicians who knowingly provide abortions; they affect every aspect of pregnancy-related care. Leaving advocacy to just a handful of us leaves lawmakers thinking that their restrictions only affect a small proportion of us. The greater medical community should also be concerned about and speak up against laws that interfere with medical decision-making and the patient-doctor relationship. Legislating medical decision-making sets a dangerous precedent that could lead to interference in other specialties for other reasons.
For politicians and the general public: Remember we are human. We have lived and treated patients through a pandemic, and now we are facing a constantly changing set of laws that criminalize us for providing standard medical care. We are tired, and we have nothing personal to gain from using our extra time and energy to speak out against unjust laws. We just want our patients – your and our mothers, sisters, and daughters – to be as safe as possible living with uteruses in this country.
Finally, continue to support organizations that support us! Thank you to WREN for doing just that.
WREN: It was a pleasure chatting with you Jessica! THANK YOU for speaking up about the harms of abortion bans in our state and defending reproductive freedom.
To join us in this fight, visit: https://www.scwren.org/act-now/
Dr. Jessica Tarleton is a board-certified practicing obstetrician-gynecologist and the vice chair of the S.C. section of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.