Moms have spoken out after four obstetric and delivery nurses from Emory Healthcare in Georgia were penalized for what appeared to be making fun of patients in a TikTok video.
The nurses can be heard discussing what they find to be the most “disgusting,” or annoying, behaviors in the video, such as visiting the hospital after an induced delivery to request food or a shower and visiting the nurse’s station after punching someone. Press the call button to stop the epidural or painkiller.
The film, which received controversy after being viewed more than 100,000 times before being taken down, was particularly unpopular with women who had unpleasant experiences with midwives while giving birth.
Emory Healthcare said it was “investigating the facts” and “taking appropriate action against the former employee responsible for the video” in a statement to ABC News.
The statement continued, “This video falls well short of the principles and standards we demand and show from each member of our team and does not represent our commitment to patient and family-centered care.” No one who receives care from us should ever feel unappreciated or uncared for. Every patient at Emory Healthcare deserves to get the kind, competent care they need in a welcoming setting.
Many of the women who watched the video and spoke to ABC News said they believed the majority of nurses worked hard and had patients’ best interests in mind, but that the remarks made by the Emory nurse had upset and stressed them out.
“I was stunned. I honestly believed they were kidding at first, but then it spread,” Aleah Enyeart, a South Bend, Indiana, mother of two, told ABC News. “I feel like I’m speaking for a lot of other parents who have watched the video about how disrespectful and upsetting it is for pregnant women because it’s such a vulnerable time,”
Enyat, 24, said the film had a particular impact on her because, after the birth of her first child in February 2021, she started her medical training with a nurse who, according to Enyat, she “has progressed from Did not feel encouraged.”
