Portugese Doctor Suspended After Baby Was Born Without A Face

It’s usually a joyous occasion when a child is born.

Parents rejoice at the sight of their new family member and their loved ones rush to see the newborn baby.

A touching sight and one that honestly always brings a tear to my eye.

Sometimes though, things go as planned. Like, horribly wrong. 

Imagine a baby being born with severe defects, with its doctor not even realizing it.

Fired For Faceless

It’ll all make sense in just a moment.

According to The Straits Times, obstetrician Dr Artur Carvalho has been voted by the Portugal’s Medical Council to be suspended for six months.

The reason?

A baby was born without his face, with the parents being under his guidance during pregnancy.

Oh, my, goodness.

The baby, Rodrigo, was born on 7 October without a nose or eyes and missing part of his skull.

Even crazier was that none of this was detected until he was born in a hospital in Setubal, about 40km south of Lisbon.

You and I are probably both wondering the same thing: how could an obstetrician miss something so crucial?

Early Signs Detected

Remember how I mentioned that Carvalho had followed the parents through the pregnancy?

They were alerted to a possible anomaly of the foetus after an ultrasound six months into pregnancy.

This could’ve been critical as most babies are born nine months after fertilisation.

But the mother’s sister claimed that the doctor reassured them that sometimes some parts of the face are not visible on ultrasounds.

Dude this is someone else’s child and you took chances? This guy is insane.

Rodrigo is still at the pediatric wing of the hospital where he was born. I can only hope nothing worse happens.

Case Taken Very Seriously

As it should be.

In fact, Carvalho has had six other complaints against him and I’m wondering now why he wasn’t suspended earlier.

Alexandre Valentim Lourenco, medical council chief for the southern region, mentioned that his actions may lead to disciplinary sanctions.

He also mentioned that such a case would affect the reputations of doctors and such harsh action is necessary to reassure pregnant women.

I’d definitely be more skeptical of doctors if something like that ever happened to people I know!

Never fully trust a ‘what-if’ situation, guys. Taking extra measures to make sure of a better outcome is always recommended.