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Ultrasound 'store' closed amid backlash from upset moms - shocking reason why

4 years 4 months 4 days ago Wednesday, November 13 2019 Nov 13, 2019 November 13, 2019 6:35 PM November 13, 2019 in News
Source: WBRZ

GONZALES - A 3-D imaging center that popped up in Ascension Parish this summer is closed. People tell 2 On Your Side they feel cheated and scammed after being told inaccurate information, some of which was more than they bargained for.

Taylor Olivier is expecting her third child and went to Bump for Joy 3-D prenatal imaging center to get a sonogram photo.

"I wasn't even 13 weeks and I wasn't going there to find out the gender of my baby," Olivier said. "She offers a package where you can go and see your baby, and I was anxious to see the baby because I hadn't seen it for four or five weeks."

She paid $70 to Riley Meghan Dunaway, who runs the business, but got more than she came in for. Olivier says Dunaway started asking her how far along she was.

"She's like, 'I'm 100 percent sure I can tell you right now what the gender is,'" Olivier said.

Having no reason to doubt otherwise, Olivier told her to print the gender image and put it in an envelope for a gender reveal later that day with her family. That night she learned she was having a boy.

A few days later, she read a Facebook post about a person with a bad experience at Bump for Joy and also had a call from a friend who visited the same place. That friend told Olivier her scan had been wrong.

At 16 weeks, Olivier went for a second opinion and learned that she was actually having a girl. Soon after, she posted about her experience on Facebook, and the post blew up. Wednesday evening the post had more than 600 comments.

"The stories that these people are telling me are just heartbreaking. I mean, mine isn't anything compared to some of these people," Olivier said. "I've had 50-75 women reach out to me about their gender being wrong or medical advice she had given them that was wrong."

Wednesday afternoon, 2 On Your Side went to the business located on S Burnside Ave. in Gonzales. The lights were off and no one answered the door. WBRZ also learned that Dunaway isn't certified or licensed to be doing what she's been doing.

The state says there is no licensure or certification required for ultrasound procedures in Louisiana, however, as for all medical procedures they should have oversight by a licensed physician. Without proper licensing, a person is not to give out a diagnosis or opinion based on their examination findings. That includes the baby's gender.

Olivier says the experience at Bump for Joy was awkward after Dunaway described her baby as "stubborn" because she couldn't get a good image of the baby. Olivier says the scan lasted for about 30 minutes, and she was asked halfway through to get up and do jumping jacks to allow for a better view of the baby.

The website for Bump for Joy has been taken down. Dunaway did answer WBRZ's call and says she does have the proper certification to perform ultrasounds. She was asked to provide the documentation but did not do so at the time of this post. Dunaway says she closed her business after the backlash she received but also said unhappy customers have not reached out to her.

WBRZ obtained a photo of a number of certificates hanging on the wall at the business and confirmed they are online courses she has taken at Gulfcoast Ultrasound Institute. Those courses don't qualify her to do ultrasounds or provide a diagnosis without a licensed physician.

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