SALLISAW - An arrest warrant was issued Friday for a Sequoyah County woman accused of practicing medicine without a license.
SALLISAW - An arrest warrant was issued Friday for a Sequoyah County woman accused of practicing medicine without a license.
Debra Disch, 59, of Roland is charged in Sequoyah County District Court with practicing medicine and performing surgery without a license, a felony.
Disch, a midwife, is accused of performing a medical procedure during a recent home birth after the victim was in labor for nearly three days, said Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter in a prepared statement.
“The mother and her baby are lucky to be alive,” Hunter said.
On a social media site, Disch identifies herself as a registered nurse and midwife.
Disch was irresponsible and put the mother and her baby in a life-threatening situation, Hunter said.
She is accused of performing an episiotomy on Elizabeth “Suzie” Bigler and also administering the drug Pitocin while Bigler was in childbirth in May, he said.
Midwifery does not require a license to practice in Oklahoma, but individuals must have a medical license to perform any procedure or administer drugs, Hunter said.
“The details of this case are disturbing,” Hunter said. “Our evidence shows that Disch was reckless in the way she performed this procedure and she was entirely outside the scope of her abilities and the law.”
Pitocin is not a scheduled drug, but is available by prescription only and is used to induce labor and also used to control bleeding. Disch did not have a valid Oklahoma prescription for the drug, he said.
Hunter said the baby was born lifeless and had to be resuscitated and witnesses claimed Disch dropped the newborn.
According to documents filed with the court, the victim’s family repeatedly urged Disch to call an ambulance when complications began arising and Disch refused each time, he said.
Following the birth, the mother began hemorrhaging uncontrollably and Disch administered two Pitocin shots to control the bleeding, the release stated.
Hunter said emergency services were eventually called and Bigler and her baby were taken to the hospital, where they remained for several days.
A search warrant of Disch’s residence found five vials of the drug Pitocin, the release stated.
Given Dish’s past in Oklahoma and Arkansas, Hunter said he hopes this charge puts Disch “out of business.”
“We hope these charges send the message to Oklahomans looking to hire a midwife to research and choose carefully,” Hunter said.
Disch is permanently banned from obtaining a license to practice as a midwife in Arkansas, he said.