A client's ex-partner told a story I was never allowed to correct
This account was submitted by a healthcare provider and de-identified before publication. Details that could identify a patient or practice have been removed, and it is shared with the provider’s consent.
The review was written by the former partner of a client, someone who states in the post itself that they were never in my care, and it recast a painful personal conflict as a complaint about my practice.
It was emotionally charged and factually off, but to anyone reading it looked like ordinary patient feedback about a birth. I had no way to explain that the author was never my client without discussing the client who actually was, which I will never do.
Midwifery is deeply relational, built almost entirely on trust and word of mouth within a tight community, so a public accusation like this travels fast and lands hard. In a close-knit community, prospective clients heard about it before they ever called me, and a few said so gently.
I reported it as a third party post from someone who admits they were not present, and Google left it up. Being defined by someone who was not in the room, on the most intimate day of a family's life, is a hard thing to carry.