Bad Experience

I’m honestly quite shocked to see all the positive reviews this doctor has. One of the main reasons we went to Dr. Miems Kleynhans (gynecologist) was because of those good reviews and because our medical aid only covers a small list of gynecologists. I couldn’t post a review on Google, so I have to use this platform to share my experience with her.

Needless to say, if you want a natural birth, this is not the doctor for you. She might sound supportive in the beginning of your pregnancy, but later she’ll find a dozen reasons to convince you that a cesarean is “best.”

We went for our first consultation and had to pay R3200 just for her to “quickly” (and I mean quickly, if it was even 5 minutes it was a lot) show us the baby’s heartbeat and talk about my nutrition. Lady, I could’ve Googled that or opened any pregnancy handbook and found the exact same information.

To recap: when we walked into her office, the first thing she said to us was, “Kom ons kyk wat het julle aangevang,” making a joke about why we were there. She repeated it two or three times. I didn’t find her “joke” funny at all, it was awkward and unnecessary. Her overall attitude just didn’t fit the situation, and to be honest, she gave off that exact Pretoria East vibe, uptight, snobbish, “boss lady, know it all.” If you’re from Pretoria, you know exactly what I mean.

The week before our appointment, we attended an info session at Midwives Exclusive to learn more about natural birth options since we’re first time parents and wanted to explore our choices. The moment we mentioned this to her, her entire attitude changed. She had been quite friendly before, but suddenly turned cold and defensive.

She made it very clear that she only does cesareans and natural births at Pretoria East Hospital, and that she’s not a stand in gynecologist for anyone giving birth with midwives. That’s fine, I completely understand that she works there. But what I don’t appreciate is what came next.

When my husband mentioned the midwives, she leaned back, looked at him, and said:

> “Jou kop is nie op die regte plek nie, jou doel is om ‘n gesonde baba huis toe te vat.” And then added, “Mense wat die midwife roete wil doen, maak ‘n lae IK besluit.”

Excuse me? That was incredibly insulting.

We even mentioned women in rural areas who don’t have other options and have to give birth naturally, to which she responded something along the lines of, “Ja, daar is duisende vrouens wat squat en babas agter bosse kry, maar hulle kon dalk slimmer uitgedraai het as hulle ander opsies gehad het.”

I could not believe the audacity of this woman. The disrespect was unreal. It’s still our choice how we want to give birth, and the way she spoke down to us just confirmed what others have warned, that many gynecologists will do anything to push for a cesarean instead of supporting a natural birth.

Before all of this, she also mentioned that if we wanted to go the natural route, we’d only meet the midwives the same night I go into labour, and she would only arrive in the last hour or so because she “needs her sleep” to assist properly.

After about 30 minutes, she suddenly stood up, opened the door, and basically showed us out. No reassurance, no warmth, no attempt to make us feel comfortable or supported in our decision.

To think she has almost a 5/5 rating on Google is beyond me.

I left there feeling disgusted by her arrogance and attitude. Paying R3200 for that “consultation” makes it even worse. Yes, I know many women today prefer to schedule cesareans for convenience, and she even said it herself, that most of her patients just want everything planned. But that doesn’t make it the norm.

Natural birth is natural, it’s how things are meant to be. Of course, sometimes complications happen and surgery is needed, but it should not be the default just because a gynecologist prefers a good night’s sleep.

If doctors like this want predictable working hours and no late night emergencies, then maybe they should be general practitioners, not gynecologists. Clearly, the paycheck matters more than truly supporting their patients and their choices.