A former Planned Parenthood patient has settled her suit against the organization in which she alleged she was incorrectly diagnosed with “common constipation” in 2022 when she actually had serious issues that put her reproductive capability at risk.
Kipenzi Chidinma’s Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit named as defendants Planned Parenthood Pasadena and San Gabriel Valley Inc. as well as Dr. Catherine Khoo. On Thursday, Chidinma’s attorney filed court papers with Judge Barbara A. Meiers notifying her that the case was resolved, but no terms were divulged.
In their previous court papers, Planned Parenthood attorneys said Khoo was not involved in Chidinma’s care and that nurse practitioners and other medical personnel provided the plaintiff treatment that met the appropriate standard of care.
According to the suit, Chidinma, now 45, went to Planned Parenthood in March 2022 for a wellness exam and told her provider that she was having abnormally heavy vaginal bleeding, headaches, hormonal imbalance and other related discomforts and abnormalities.
Chidinma additionally told the provider that she had bloating and a possible mass in her abdomen, but was denied an ultrasound and told she had “common constipation,” the suit brought in August 2023 stated.
Chidinma argued that her condition was more serious and again requested the ultrasound and equivalent testing, but she was again turned down and assured that the constipation diagnosis was accurate, according to the suit, which also stated that she was also denied a referral to a specialist.
Chidinma’s symptoms persisted for several months and worsened, so she returned to Planned Parenthood in January 2023 and asked again for an ultrasound, finding out for the first time that the facility did not have ultrasound equipment, the suit alleges.
Chidinma was granted a request to be examined by someone else and it took less than a minute for the new provider to diagnose that the plaintiff’s uterus was sharply expanded and that masses were present that could have been found during the March 2022 Planned Parenthood office visit, the suit stated.
Chidinma cried and contacted her insurance carrier from her car to obtain coverage from a different provider organization and she learned during her visit to the new facility that she had fibroids so large and advanced that her reproductive health was at risk and that non-surgical options she had in March 2022 were no longer available, the suit stated.