Nine months into the pandemic some OB/GYN clinics are seeing an influx of patients, but it’s not what you think. Dr. Karli Boggs, Clinical Director at the LSU Clinic at Women’s Hospital in Baton Rouge said they are overwhelmed.
“Because patients had delayed care for months during kind of the acute phase of the pandemic and now, they are trying to get back into care, as well as limited access,” said Boggs.
Dr. Boggs said many of their new patients are women who lost health insurance along with the jobs, and now have Medicaid coverage. Boggs said the average wait to schedule a gynecological visit as opposed to obstetrics is three months or more.
“And so, we as the kind of safety net clinic in Baton Rouge are really seeing an uptick in GYN patients looking for access to care,” said Boggs.
Another alarming issue from the pandemic, Dr. Boggs said they are seeing more OB patients than usual that are experiencing domestic abuse.
“We have seen an increase in patients coming in with nonfatal, but definite assault that the pregnancy is fine, but they are bruised and beaten,” said Boggs.
Boggs said if you are a victim of domestic abuse to let your physician know, and they can assist you with resources, or local law enforcement.
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