“Abortion doesn’t just mean going to an abortion clinic.”
This comment comes from Dr. Ana Tobiasz in Bismarck. Tobiasz is a highly-respected expert in high-risk pregnancies. She is terrified of what will happen to women in North Dakota who have serious complications with their pregnancies once the state’s abortion ban kicks in.
“I can’t practice the proper standard of care and offer these women the treatment that they deserve,” Tobiasz said.
Tobiasz sees many pregnant women who have had their water broken before the fetus can survive outside of the womb. “When a woman’s water breaks, that allows bacteria to go into a uterus,” Tobiasz said. “That can cause a serious infection. These infections are life-threatening.”
At that point, it is impossible to save the baby.
“I induce to save the life of the mother,” Tobiasz said. “The only treatment is to get the baby out of the uterus. Technically, it’s an abortion. However, with the state’s abortion trigger law, this treatment won’t be allowed.”
Contributed / Dr. Ana Tobiasz
It’s tricky because when the water initially breaks, the woman is not near death.
“In that moment, she’s not threatened with dying,” Tobiasz said. “The threat is there over days or weeks. I would need to wait for her to get worse. I can’t do anything until there’s an emergency, such as bleeding heavily or hemorrhaging. She will die unless I do something.”
It’s a real dilemma for doctors. “How sick does she have to be before I can act?” Tobiasz said. “It’s too gray for someone to intervene. It’s extremely difficult. The patient isn’t getting the medical treatment that they should get.”
Of course it’s unnecessarily dangerous to have to wait until patients are near death before you can properly treat them.
“It delays patient care,” Tobiasz said. “Women could die in the meantime. I know this will happen.”
It is possible to look for a country with different laws. However, this can prove difficult. “To get the proper care when they need it, women are going to have to go out of state,” Tobiasz said. “Do these women have the resources? Where will they go? There’s going to be fewer places we can send these people, and they’re going to be overloaded.”
Tobiasz can also treat pregnant women with pre-eclampsia. This condition can lead to strokes, brain swelling, kidney failure, liver disease, or even death.
“We recommend ending the pregnancy for women with pre-eclampsia. We recommend delivering right away,” Tobiasz said. “That’s the only option.”
Thus, North Dakota’s abortion ban will put handcuffs on doctors and will be devastating to women.
“When they made these laws in North Dakota, they didn’t think about the consequences,” Tobiasz said. “I’m disgusted, confused and enraged.”
Next week: What should you do?
Shaw was a former WDAY TV reporter, and former KVRR TV News director.
This column does NOT necessarily reflect the opinions of The Forum’s editorial boards or Forum ownership.
