By Kyle Hopkins, Anchorage Daily News, Alaska
Jun. 18–Dr. Colleen Murphy can deliver babies again at Providence Alaska Medical Center.
Hospital leaders voted this week to restore Murphy’s obstetric privileges after suspending then in May, the doctor said Wednesday.
Providence Alaska has declined to comment on the case, saying it’s against medical staff bylaws to talk about what doctors can and can’t do at the hospital.
Murphy is a popular women’s health advocate with a sometimes controversial career. In May, she said she believed the suspension was political motivated. “In this age of litigation, hospitals are under a great deal of pressure,” she said in a prepared statement.
Murphy — who estimates she’s delivered more than 3,000 babies over 20 years — said she’s been measured in the past as performing a lower-than average rate of Caesarean-section deliveries.
Murphy referenced news stories about the growing number of C-sections, including a Wilmington, N.C., Star-News story in which Dr. Bruce Flamm, regional chairman of The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists is quoted saying, “All of the current pressures seem to be going in the direction of more C-sections, not less.”
At a three-hour meeting Tuesday night, Murphy said she was asked a question about being “proud” of her low C-section rate.
“I said no, no, no no, that’s not true,” Murphy said Wednesday. “It’s not about low Caesarean-section rate, it’s about optimal outcomes for the patient and her family. … The whole idea is just to basically give the patient the kind of care she needs in the right place, the right time, by the right person.”
Asked about the hospital’s decision to suspend her privileges in the first place, Murphy said, “They’ve referred to my turbulent career.”
Murphy has been suspended from delivering babies at Alaska Regional Hospital in Anchorage for the past three years. The restriction followed a review of 10 deliveries she performed at the hospital in 2004. A hospital committee concluded she failed to meet the minimum standard of care in five cases.
Soon after, the Alaska State Medical Board voted to suspend Murphy’s license. But in a subsequent review of the case, an administrative law judge concluded Murphy had done nothing negligent. Her license was restored, with an apology.
Murphy said she believes she became a political target for her activism, such as efforts to make emergency contraception available through pharmacies.
Dr. Norm Wilder, chief medical officer at Alaska Regional, said politics is never part of the hospital’s peer review process.
In an e-mail Wednesday, Murphy praised Providence’s decision to restore her privileges. “They voted to support women’s health care based on scientific literature and the national standard of care. … They did not vote to support health care based on fear of litigation, personal convenience or perceived profit.”
While her obstetric care practice was suspended at Providence, Murphy continued her practice as gynecologist. Alaska Women’s Health Services looked after her patients.
“I called them up and I checked on them. … I felt part of the process,” she said.
Murphy estimates the hiatus cost her about $60,000.
“It’s probably going to take me nine months to rebuild my practice,” Murphy said.
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