The Medical Board of California has chosen to hold its quarterly board meeting, scheduled for August 24-25, in Bakersfield for the first time. Holding the quarterly meeting here allows the board to hear from the community directly while also addressing concerns over maternal mortality rates and medical negligence in Kern County. 23ABC's Ruby Rivera has the story.
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00:00 The Medical Board of California held its quarterly meeting today for the first time holding that
00:05 meeting in Bakersfield.
00:06 The goal?
00:07 Opening a dialogue between board members and the community, with many showing up to express
00:12 their concerns after losing loved ones to what they say was medical negligence.
00:16 23 ABC's Ruby Rivera spoke with families who attended the meeting and tells us what changes
00:21 they feel are needed to improve medical care.
00:25 New laws, more community involvement, and more conversations.
00:28 These are just some of the improvements that families asked the state medical board to
00:31 make.
00:32 Although doctors cannot control the unpredictability of medical emergencies during labor and delivery,
00:40 they should never be the cause of birth trauma.
00:44 Families who spoke during Thursday's meeting said they feel like they can't trust doctors
00:47 after their experiences.
00:49 Members were seen comforting each other, sharing their stories of loss, and while the board
00:52 members didn't comment directly on the families' statements, they did thank those in attendance
00:56 for voicing their concerns.
00:58 And families say emotions could be seen in the board members' faces.
01:01 Some of these board members are actually feeling.
01:04 You know, they're not just listening, they're actually feeling.
01:08 Patient advocate for Consumer Watchdog Michelle Moncerrat-Ramos worked hard to bring these
01:12 families to the meeting, driven by the death of her fiancé in 2003 due to what she called
01:16 medical negligence.
01:18 Moncerrat-Ramos says there's a lot of internal protection within the medical field, which
01:21 is why she says families are also advocating for changes to the law.
01:24 A required interview before your complaint is dismissed, a patient impact statement before
01:33 a disparate action is taken with your complaint, similar to a victim impact statement.
01:39 Senate Bill 815, also known as the Sunset Bill, is set to be voted on next week in the
01:43 Assembly Appropriations Committee, where if passed, it will be sent to the Assembly for
01:47 a full vote.
01:48 Volunteer with Consumer Watchdog Larcenia Taylor says she's grateful that reform is
01:52 coming.
01:53 She says she lost her husband due to medical negligence after she claims he was given the
01:56 wrong medication and hospital staff left him unattended for more than half an hour.
02:00 Taylor says she knew she had to find answers about her husband's death, but she couldn't
02:04 believe what she heard when she got in contact with Consumer Watchdog.
02:07 The doctor that supposedly was over James also had misdiagnosed a three-year-old.
02:14 So she said, Michelle asked me, "What's the doctor's name?"
02:19 And I told her name, she said, "You won't believe the same doctor misdiagnosed a three-year-old."
02:25 Taylor says the doctor in question still has a medical license, and while these conversations
02:29 are critical for change, she says work needs to be done from within, since she believes
02:32 doctors are protecting each other.
02:34 Just as police protect police, so does doctors.
02:38 So I don't want the community to be deceived and think that you're going to report a doctor
02:45 because they all hang around together.
02:48 Taylor says implementing SB 815 is on the right track to true reform, but she also says
02:52 she would like to see more community members on the board to bring a level of balance.
02:56 We should have citizens on the board.
02:59 That way when doctors or lawyers are going too far the other way, someone will speak
03:04 up and say, "No, that's not the way it is."
03:07 In Bakersfield, Rabir Behra, 23 ABC News, connecting you.