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Is It Legal To Get A An Urine Drug Test During Pregnancy?
Question: pregnancy rights and newborn testing / right to deny mecconium testing I live in Nevada and need to know what my rights are concerning my o.b
doctor testing my urine for drugs / alcohol without my consent or knowledge first, and then when I give birth , if my urine is negative for drugs , can Dr. still test my newborns mecconium? and what is the laws regarding my privacy & his disclosure of any of these issues. ??? please help, feeling violated by my OB doctor & unsure if he can do these things to me For no other reason besides he seen my older sister in police log of newspaper & assumed I was the same way.
doctor testing my urine for drugs / alcohol without my consent or knowledge first, and then when I give birth , if my urine is negative for drugs , can Dr. still test my newborns mecconium? and what is the laws regarding my privacy & his disclosure of any of these issues. ??? please help, feeling violated by my OB doctor & unsure if he can do these things to me For no other reason besides he seen my older sister in police log of newspaper & assumed I was the same way.
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Hello and welcome to Healthcare Magic. Thanks for your query.
For doing a urine drug testing on you, the doctor needs to have informed you and taken consent. Even in some specific (legal) situations where the consent of the individual is not required, it is still the ethical responsibility of the doctor to inform the person that that the test is being taken against the person's wishes due to the legal stipulations.
As far as the baby's meconium testing is concerned, the mother's consent is not required. Even if the mother's urine drug screen is negative, the doctor can still do a meconium testing, because the mother's urine will show only recent drug exposure (i.e. within the last few days), whereas a meconium drug testing can show evidence of in-utero drug exposure even during the early stages of pregnancy.
Wish you all the best.
- Dr. Jonas Sundarakumar
Consultant Psychiatrist
For doing a urine drug testing on you, the doctor needs to have informed you and taken consent. Even in some specific (legal) situations where the consent of the individual is not required, it is still the ethical responsibility of the doctor to inform the person that that the test is being taken against the person's wishes due to the legal stipulations.
As far as the baby's meconium testing is concerned, the mother's consent is not required. Even if the mother's urine drug screen is negative, the doctor can still do a meconium testing, because the mother's urine will show only recent drug exposure (i.e. within the last few days), whereas a meconium drug testing can show evidence of in-utero drug exposure even during the early stages of pregnancy.
Wish you all the best.
- Dr. Jonas Sundarakumar
Consultant Psychiatrist
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
ok thank you and in regards to the legal aspects of all this, does the doctor have a right legally to disclose my test results of any one without my knowledge or consent? ( like my family, or call my mom and tell her my test results of test u was never informed of. what legal action should I take or what are my options where the doctor is violating my privacy rights, and or is there a hospital medical board o can report him to or do I just contact a lawyer? and he has me so concerned and stressed out I not only mad about.him treating me like a P
O.S. I don't wanna return to his office again. I feel very strongly about his words and actions towards me, that I don't want him as my doctor anymore & definitely not delivering my child, what can I do if he is Dr. on call when I have this Baby? ?
O.S. I don't wanna return to his office again. I feel very strongly about his words and actions towards me, that I don't want him as my doctor anymore & definitely not delivering my child, what can I do if he is Dr. on call when I have this Baby? ?
Hello again and thanks for writing in.
I'm sorry to hear that you've had a bad experience with your OB doctor and that this has put you in considerable stress.
As regards disclosing your test results to a third person, it is the ethical responsibilty of the doctor to maintain patient confidentiality, and at any stage of treatment, ensure that the patient is aware and understands well about what is being done and why it is being done.
If you would like to take up this issue seriously, then I suggest that the best way would be to take it up with the Hospital Medical Board. Every hospital should have a Hospital Ethics Committee which can address such issues where there are complaints about unethical medical practices or violation of patient rights. This will also ensure that in the future your rights are taken seriously and also ensure that your further treatment / delivery at the hospital doesn't have any hitches, just because of misunderstandings with one particular doctor.
Best regards,
- Dr. Jonas Sundarakumar
Consultant Psychiatrist
I'm sorry to hear that you've had a bad experience with your OB doctor and that this has put you in considerable stress.
As regards disclosing your test results to a third person, it is the ethical responsibilty of the doctor to maintain patient confidentiality, and at any stage of treatment, ensure that the patient is aware and understands well about what is being done and why it is being done.
If you would like to take up this issue seriously, then I suggest that the best way would be to take it up with the Hospital Medical Board. Every hospital should have a Hospital Ethics Committee which can address such issues where there are complaints about unethical medical practices or violation of patient rights. This will also ensure that in the future your rights are taken seriously and also ensure that your further treatment / delivery at the hospital doesn't have any hitches, just because of misunderstandings with one particular doctor.
Best regards,
- Dr. Jonas Sundarakumar
Consultant Psychiatrist
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
thank you so much! you have clarified alot for me, making the stress put on by that OB Dr. a little less. appreciate your answers and time. sincerely,
one concerned patient ..
one concerned patient ..
Hello again,
I'm glad that my information was beneficial to you. Wish you a safe delivery and all the best.
Best regards,
Dr. Jonas Sundarakumar
Consultant Psychiatrist
I'm glad that my information was beneficial to you. Wish you a safe delivery and all the best.
Best regards,
Dr. Jonas Sundarakumar
Consultant Psychiatrist
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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