Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals

TESTIMONY IN FAVOR OF H.R 1153:Condemning Unwanted, Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals without Their Full, Informed Consent

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY; ENERGY AND COMMERCE

SEPTEMBER 25, 2020

Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.

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My name is XXX. I am an advocate of patients’ rights from Nevada and representing Patient Advocate Foundation, which I am a member. I am here to express support of H.R. 1153, “An act relative to condemning unwanted, unnecessary medical procedures on individuals without their full, informed consent.” The bill was presented in the Congress by House Representative, Jayapal Pramilla in September 2020. The bill calls for patients to be allowed to make informed choices on their health, bodies and their protection from undergoing avoidable and/ or non-consensual medical procedures without their full consent and knowledge. It also allows patients to seek second opinion from independent medical practitioners if they not satisfied with the first prognosis given.Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.

I am in support of the bill because it promotes a patient’s right to informed consent. According to American Medical Association (AMA) code of medical ethics opinion, a patient has a right to make informed consent and receive clear truthful information and explanations regarding all medical procedures, the risks involved, side effects, and recuperation related problems. The act also protect the persons under United States Immigration Customs enforcement custody by ensuring they receive adequate care and there is transparency and accountability in dealing with them. I testify for the bill because it permits the individuals who may have undergone through non-consensual medical procedures in Irwin County Detention Center to participate in the investigation, share their experiences without being afraid of reprisal as well as bringing to justice the individuals who performed the avoidable medical procedures.Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.

The bill will address the issue of unnecessary medical procedures which has been a challenge and a medical malpractice in United States of America.Some doctors have recommended avoidable medical procedures to get more allowances or profitability. Unnecessary medical procedures have been done as a result of misdiagnosis while wrong surgical procedures have been performed on wrong body part or wrong patient. Most of these unnecessary medical surgeries are done without patient’s consent (Ungureanu, Alexa, & Ungureanu, 2018). They put patients at risk of serious infections, complications and long recovery periods making them unable to work. According toRojas-Lizana (2020), unnecessary medical procedures are estimated to cost over $750 billion annually which is 25 percent all total medical costs.Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.

According to Madden (2019), patients who areimmigrants experience various challenges in accessing medical care. Apart from undergoing non-consensual medical procedures, they face delayed diagnosis which is a medical negligence. Delayed diagnosis may lead to undue injury or causes the disease to progress further. Delayed diagnosis can be occasioned by huge workload on the doctor’s part diminishing his capability to administer healthcare.However, immigrants in detention camps experience poor healthcare due to poor attention to their needs by their health professionals. Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.Women in the detention camps have undergone unconsented hysterectomy. Errors on anesthesia have led to far reaching health consequences on immigrants because health professionals fail to review the patient’s medical history and records.Expectant women have experiences of being mishandled when giving birth such as failure to monitor vital signs andmisdiagnosis leading to fetal distress, lack of oxygen, and reduced heartbeat and consequently death and birth defects.  The H.R 1153 bill will ensure that these medical negligence become a thing of the past especially among the black immigrants. The patients’ rights will be respected and patient dignity will be observed. In addition, the United States Immigration Customs will exercise caution and care when dealing with immigrants’ health issues.

The bill will address the neglect of health and safety standards among the immigrants and the incarcerated individuals. Many immigrants suffer abuses and violence in their immigration journey. They leave their countries due to political instability and strives. The immigrants then suffer abuses while in United States Immigration facilities.  According to Burgess (2019), the fundamental healthcare rights such as using medical interpreters when a patient has language barrier and giving access to painkillers when necessary to incarcerated people have been abused. Some of the patient were forced to sign consent forms written in medical jargon they do not understand without explanations.Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.

Medical abuses of immigrants have been documented severally with little or no action taken against the perpetrators. The bill will help to reduce the instances of medical abuses. Women detainees and immigrants who have undergone sexual violence have been denied access to medical care and when they access it, they are forced to undergo unjustified and nonconsensual gynecological surgeries. At the Irwin Detention Centre, Congresswoman Jayapal established a minimum of seventeen reported cases of unwarranted surgeries on women including hysterectomies.Unfortunately, the abuses are not isolated to a single detention center. The action of forcing women on unnecessary surgeries which interfere with their fertility while their lives are at stake for being in detention is vicious and should be stopped.Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.

Despite the many legislations and penalties put in place for doctors who practice medical malpractices, the rights of patients have continually been abused with few of cases being documented. The victims of medical malpractices in detention camps rarely get justice.Therefore, it is imperative to improve the access to medical care, observation of patients’ rights as well as ensure they undergo medical procedures when necessary with full informed consent. H. R. 1153would implement necessary healthcare quality improvement measures within detention centres. It will promote adherence to medical ethics when handling all patients regardless of their background or immigration status. The United States Immigration Customs and detention centres will be required to ensure ethical handling of medical matters concerning the immigrants under their care. In addition, patients will receive proper instructions and explanations regarding the health conditions and medical care they are to undergo.Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.

I would suggest that the legislation addresses in depth on how to address the injustices suffered by the immigrants who underwent unnecessary and non-consensual medical procedures. It should also address the compensation if any that should be given to those patients who have failed to resume their normal quality of life as a result of the complications and disabilities they got from the unwarranted medical procedures. The legislation should recommend training and creation of awareness on patient rights and healthcare professional roles in promoting quality care especially in immigration centers and detention camps.  In addition, it should call for equity in accessing of healthcare for all patients.In conclusion, the H.R 1153 is a bill that will help in promoting human rights and dignity. I urge you to vote in its favor and help eliminate the unnecessary medical procedures and ensure that patient rights are adhered to.Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.

Thank you for your time and listening to my testimony. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me on the contact information provided below.Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.

My name is XXX. I am an advocate of patients’ rights from Nevada and representing Patient Advocate Foundation, which I am a member. I am here to express support of H.R. 1153, “An act relative to condemning unwanted, unnecessary medical procedures on individuals without their full, informed consent.” The bill was presented in the Congress by House Representative, JayapalPramilla in September 2020. The bill calls for patients to be allowed to make informed choices on their health, bodies and their protection from undergoing avoidable and/ or non-consensual medical procedures without their full consent and knowledge. It also allows patients to seek second opinion from independent medical practitioners if they not satisfied with the first prognosis given.Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.

I am in support of the bill because it promotes a patient’s right to informed consent. According to American Medical Association (AMA) code of medical ethics opinion, a patient has a right to make informed consent and receive clear truthful information and explanations regarding all medical procedures, the risks involved, side effects, and recuperation related problems. The act also protect the persons under United States Immigration Customs enforcement custody by ensuring they receive adequate care and there is transparency and accountability in dealing with them. I testify for the bill because it permits the individuals who may have undergone through non-consensual medical procedures in Irwin County Detention Center to participate in the investigation, share their experiences without being afraid of reprisal as well as bringing to justice the individuals who performed the avoidable medical procedures.Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.

The bill will address the issue of unnecessary medical procedures which has been a challenge and a medical malpractice in United States of America.Some doctors have recommended avoidable medical procedures to get more allowances or profitability. Unnecessary medical procedures have been done as a result of misdiagnosis while wrong surgical procedures have been performed on wrong body part or wrong patient. Most of these unnecessary medical surgeries are done without patient’s consent (Ungureanu, Alexa, &Ungureanu, 2018). They put patients at risk of serious infections, complications and long recovery periods making them unable to work. According toRojas-Lizana (2020), unnecessary medical procedures are estimated to cost over $750 billion annually which is 25 percent all total medical costs.

Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.

According to Madden (2019), patients who areimmigrants experience various challenges in accessing medical care. Apart from undergoing non-consensual medical procedures, they face delayed diagnosis which is a medical negligence. Delayed diagnosis may lead to undue injury or causes the disease to progress further. Delayed diagnosis can be occasioned by huge workload on the doctor’s part diminishing his capability to administer healthcare.Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.However, immigrants in detention camps experience poor healthcare due to poor attention to their needs by their health professionals. Women in the detention camps have undergone unconsented hysterectomy. Errors on anesthesia have led to far reaching health consequences on immigrants because health professionals fail to review the patient’s medical history and records.Expectant women have experiences of being mishandled when giving birth such as failure to monitor vital signs andmisdiagnosis leading to fetal distress, lack of oxygen, and reduced heartbeat and consequently death and birth defects.  The H.R 1153 bill will ensure that these medical negligence become a thing of the past especially among the black immigrants. The patients’ rights will be respected and patient dignity will be observed. In addition, the United States Immigration Customs will exercise caution and care when dealing with immigrants’ health issues.Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.

The bill will address the neglect of health and safety standards among the immigrants and the incarcerated individuals. Many immigrants suffer abuses and violence in their immigration journey. They leave their countries due to political instability and strives. The immigrants then suffer abuses while in United States Immigration facilities.  According to Burgess (2019), the fundamental healthcare rights such as using medical interpreters when a patient has language barrier and giving access to painkillers when necessary to incarcerated people have been abused. Some of the patient were forced to sign consent forms written in medical jargon they do not understand without explanations.Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.

Medical abuses of immigrants have been documented severally with little or no action taken against the perpetrators. The bill will help to reduce the instances of medical abuses. Women detainees and immigrants who have undergone sexual violence have been denied access to medical care and when they access it, they are forced to undergo unjustified and nonconsensual gynecological surgeries. At the Irwin Detention Centre, Congresswoman Jayapal established a minimum of seventeen reported cases of unwarranted surgeries on women including hysterectomies.Unfortunately, the abuses are not isolated to a single detention center. The action of forcing women on unnecessary surgeries which interfere with their fertility while their lives are at stake for being in detention is vicious and should be stopped.Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.

Despite the many legislations and penalties put in place for doctors who practice medical malpractices, the rights of patients have continually been abused with few of cases being documented. The victims of medical malpractices in detention camps rarely get justice.Therefore, it is imperative to improve the access to medical care, observation of patients’ rights as well as ensure they undergo medical procedures when necessary with full informed consent. H. R. 1153would implement necessary healthcare quality improvement measures within detention centres. It will promote adherence to medical ethics when handling all patients regardless of their background or immigration status. The United States Immigration Customs and detention centres will be required to ensure ethical handling of medical matters concerning the immigrants under their care. In addition, patients will receive proper instructions and explanations regarding the health conditions and medical care they are to undergo.Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.

I would suggest that the legislation addresses in depth on how to address the injustices suffered by the immigrants who underwent unnecessary and non-consensual medical procedures. It should also address the compensation if any that should be given to those patients who have failed to resume their normal quality of life as a result of the complications and disabilities they got from the unwarranted medical procedures. The legislation should recommend training and creation of awareness on patient rights and healthcare professional roles in promoting quality care especially in immigration centers and detention camps.  In addition, it should call for equity in accessing of healthcare for all patients.In conclusion, the H.R 1153 is a bill that will help in promoting human rights and dignity. I urge you to vote in its favor and help eliminate the unnecessary medical procedures and ensure that patient rights are adhered to.Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.

Thank you for your time and listening to my testimony. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me on the contact information provided below.Unnecessary Medical Procedures on Individuals.