In Viral Video, Dr Karthika Krishnamoorthy Reveals Risks Of Online Pregnancy Counselling

Dr Karthika Krishnamoorthy, a Chennai-based women's health specialist, has spoken up on the risks surrounding online pregnancy counselling and programs in a video that is going viral on the internet. In an Instagram video, posted earlier this week, which has amassed over 1.5 lakh views, Dr Krishnamoorthy notifies the audience about the shortcomings of seeking information and techniques of delivery through online sources, saying they might compromise on the health of the birthgiver.

"When you need to provide advice to someone about pregnancy, then the person needs to have experience and qualifications. One needs to have studied it properly and be a certified practitioner and counsellor. During COVID-19, people have started giving pregnancy counselling advice online, which can be dangerous since the client does not know whether the counsellor is licensed or not," she says in her video.

She adds that a doctor being approached for counselling must be informed about the client's family and other details, only following which any medical advice can be given. This is something that online sessions often do not include. "How can generic advice be offered to persons about to give birth?" she asks.

What Is Dr Karthika Krishnamoorthy Saying?

She also speaks about '&t=4s">pregnancy and pre-pregnancy classes' conducted online in groups, raising questions on the safety hazards such sessions carry. "I don’t understand how it can be done online for about 200 participants without taking such conditions into consideration? Such sessions should be held after assessing the patient’s past history, present condition..."

Krishnamoorthy's video prompted comments from fellow gynecologists who agreed with her. A comment from an account under the name Dr Aishwarya Parthasarathy read, "Excellent dr. Karthika. I'm a Gynecologist myself and I'm seeing so much lack of trust because of half baked knowledge thrusted by influencers... I'm seeing so much negativity especially about birth trauma and portray Indian Gynecologists in bad light. I hope it reaches public and always make them seek right birth coaches."

Dr Karthika Krishnamoorthy is a Chennai-based doctor who practices as consultant obstetrics, gynecology and fertility specialist. She has a YouTube channel where she offers information on relevant women's health issues as well. She also happens to be the sister of Tamil film star Dhanush.