The following are statistical information form the 2001 New England Journal of Medicine:  Results Uterine rupture occurred at a rate of 1.6 per 1000 among women with repeated cesarean delivery without labor (11 women), 5.2 per 1000 among women with spontaneous onset of labor (56 women), 7.7 per 1000 among women whose labor was induced without prostaglandins (15 women), and 24.5 per 1000 among women with prostaglandin-induced labor (9 women). As compared with the risk in women with repeated cesarean delivery without labor, uterine rupture was more likely among women with spontaneous onset of labor (relative risk, 3.3; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.8 to 6.0), induction of labor without prostaglandins (relative risk, 4.9; 95 percent confidence interval, 2.4 to 9.7), and induction with prostaglandins (relative risk, 15.6; 95 percent confidence interval, 8.1 to 30.0).

In February 2007, I gave birth to my son, Justin Tyler Ware; he is my miracle baby.  But with advanced technology, doctors and medical staff can take more proactive and productive measures to prevent ruptured uterus from occurring and prevent babies from having lack of oxygen to brain.

Unfortunately in my case, I believe that my ruptured uterus was due to pure negligence.  I was a high risk pregnancy.  My pregnancy was a high risk because I have hypertension (high blood pressure) and problems with my kidneys.

Even though doctors knew that I had a higher risk, they still stuck me with a resident doctor with barely three years experience and a nurse who barely finished nursing school.  The nurse had the worse bedside manner.  It was taking a long time for me to dilate so they induced me with oxytocin.   She left me in my room for hours at a time and refused to get me a doctor.

I begged and pleated with the nurse to get me a doctor and that I was in excruciating pain. I screamed and hollered at the top of my lungs and no one heard my cries.  I knew that my baby was in danger but none of the medical staff would listen to me.  I did not know what to do.  My husband demanded that they send in a doctor but they ignored him too.  The Medical staff’s actions showed that me they did not care.  I felt like they were trying to kill me and my baby and did not want to make sure he comes into this world alive.  They had a hard time controlling my blood pressure during delivery.  I literally felt like I was in a horror movie.  I wanted to get up and leave because I felt like my life and my baby's life was in danger because most of the medical staff was incompetent and heartless.  I was paralyzed from the waist down so I could not just up and leave.

The hospital’s anesthesiologist did not know what she was doing; the anesthesiologist just finished medical school and did not have any experienced doctor supervising her.  She did not do a proper epidural so she had to do it again hours later.  She too had the nastiest attitude about having to do the epidural again even though it was her fought.

Over and over I asked the nurse for a doctor and told her that the pain and that I was feeling was worse than the pain I felt with my other two children.  The nurse did not budge.  I asked for a new nurse but they act like they did not hear me, I was totally ignored.  I was so weak.  Thirty hours passed since I first started to dilate.  The resident finally came in and she told me to push but when I did it was too late.  My uterus ruptured and I began hemorrhaging.  I was dying and so was my baby.  The resident did not know what to do.  She left and came back later with a more experienced doctor.

I was falling in an out of consciousness. The doctor tried to get Justin out with forceps but was unsuccessful.  I could feel my baby kicking in my womb.  He was fighting for his life. They had to move me from labor and Delivery to the Operating Room (OR).  The OR was not near the delivery room.  The medical staff had to go down three long halls on the other side of the building. OR should have been much closer to labor & delivery just in case for emergency C-Sections; this too was also negligence upon the hospital.

When I was rushed to OR the nurses were gossiping and were not helping to get me prepped for surgery.  One nurse had to literally yell at them to get them to help me get ready for surgery.  I again wanted the incompetent nurse out but I was too weak.  They took my baby and but I did not hear him cry they rushed him to NICU.

I had to get a blood transfusion. I later found out my son had an Apgar score of only 1.   He was near death when he was born.  He was the biggest baby in NICU weighing in at 8 pound 4 ounces.  He should not have been in there.  If the doctors and medical staff had done their job and listened to me then none of this would have happened.

My experience was a nightmare.  But maybe I went through this in order to help others.  I will never know why this happened to me and my son but I know one thing for sure I want to help others not have to got through the same hospital nightmare that I have been through.  The following are some tips and advice that I hope that you all will find helpful. 

How to avoid incompetent doctors, medical staff, and hospitals:

1.  Make sure you know if a hospital is a learning/teaching hospital.  Be very careful it is because often time they try to push off inexperienced doctors and nurses with poor bedside manners.

2.  Ask doctors their credentials/qualifications

3.  Research the hospital - See if they have a good reputation.

4.  Ask others about their experience at that particular hospital.

5.  If you do not feel comfortable you always have the right to demand a more experienced doctor especially if they are doing any type of major surgery.

6.  Check the Medical Board to see if the doctors are licensed.

7. Warning!!! If you see a waiver notice in the paperwork to have you to waive your rights to sue the hospital for medical malpractice, this is a warning sign that the hospital might have a high incident of being sued due to medical negligence.

If this similar thing happen to you please consider the following:

1.  Request you medical records as soon as possible (ASAP)

2.  Look for lawyers that practices law within your state.  Makes sure you check out their credentials and make sure they have actually handled and won some medical malpractice law suits against hospitals.

3.  Look out for 1-800 type lawyers on television commercials and ads that say that they help people with medical malpractices.  Some of them actually work for the hospitals.  Some law firms are only after the highest bidder and if you can't pay them then they will give you the run around and help the hospital by saying they might represent and give you the false pretense that they are interested in your case.  Some possibly take fees from the hospital to ensure they have enough time to flag your record and falsify your records to protect themselves and not pay you for anything.  And in the mean time you are suffering extreme medical cost due their negligence.

4.  When you request your medical records make sure you put everything in writing.  If a negligent hospital tries to keep you from getting your records and is stalling time you will have legitimate proof that this is really taking place.  Make sure you send them a certified letter and go to the hospitals medical records to make sure you made additional efforts to getting your medical records.  Remember the hospital is stalling for time to falsify their records and to ensure you miss the date of statue of limitations.

Kimberly S. Ware is also a sought after speaker and the author of Heal My Wings:  A Healing Guide for Women, Heal My Wings:  A Healing Journal & Workbook, The Nia Trilogy, and The Natalie Series. You contact Kimberly Ware at info.kimberlyware.com. Her website address is www.kimberlyware.com.