Posted on 04/08/2009 4:24:45 PM PDT by chase19
Christian Doctors Respond to Abortion Poll, Say Conscience Clause Needed
by Steven Ertelt LifeNews.com Editor
February 9, 2007 Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- A national organization for Christian doctors is responding to a survey in the New England Journal of Medicine showing 52 percent said they oppose abortion and others wouldn't refer women considering an abortion to a place that does them.
The group says the poll shows the need for conscience clause legislation that protects the right of physicians to not be forced to be involved in medical practices that violates their moral or religious beliefs.
The poll, sponsored by the University of Chicago found some physicians believe it is appropriate to withhold information about abortion on moral grounds.
Dr. David Stevens, the head of the the Christian Medical Association says the study "suggests that many physicians may still feel pressured to violate their own ethical integrity by referring patients to other doctors who will perform morally objectionable practices."
"We need laws that protect physicians' rights of conscience, and we need education to encourage doctors to stand firm on strong moral and ethical principles," he said.
Stevens said that doctors have the right to stand firm on ethical medical practices by not only refraining from engaging in the practice but from referring people to doctors that do the objectionable procedures so they're not a party to them.
"If it is morally wrong to perform an abortion or euthanasia, it is morally wrong to facilitate abortion or euthanasia with a referral," he said.
Instead of forcing physicians to participate directly or indirectly in abortion, euthanasia or other practices, Dr. Al Weir, who directs outreach for CMA, says medical schools should be doing more to help budding physicians uphold high standards.
"Patients would be alarmed to discover that many medical schools have quietly stopped administering oaths in which doctors profess to upholding the Hippocratic standards that protect patients," he explained.
"Many medical students today are taught that there are no moral absolutes, and that a doctor's role basically is to accommodate whatever the patient wants," Weir added.
The study found 14 percent of those surveyed do not believe they are required to tell a patient about all treatment options when it comes to morally objectionable procedures such as abortion.
And 29 percent of physicians say they do not feel they must refer someone to another doctor for a treatment they oppose or were undecided.
Doctors who described themselves as strong Christians, whether Protestant or Catholic, were more likely to refuse a referral or more information about morally objectionable procedures like abortion.
Some 1,820 practicing U.S. family doctors and specialists chose randomly from a database were mailed a survey and 63 percent of them responded.
"Patients would be alarmed to discover that many medical schools have quietly stopped administering oaths in which doctors profess to upholding the Hippocratic standards that protect patients," he explained."
This is an old article but I found it gave information others didn't. I just saw a snippet on Fox where doctors stated they would leave the medical profession if they were forced to go against their conscience in matters of abortion, referrals to abortionists, giving out information on abortion etc.
4/8/09 - Video - Conscience Clause Going Away?:
http://www.thehopeforamerica.com/play.php?id=796
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2225209/posts
Catholic World News (CWN)
US bishops ask Catholics: comment on ‘conscience clause’ removal
Apr. 7, 2009 (CWNews.com) -
On Thursday, April 9— Holy Thursday— the US government will close the 30-day period allotted for public comment on President Obama’s proposal to eliminate the “conscience clause” that protects health-care workers.
The American bishops have asked all Catholics to make their voices heard on this proposal. Although the Obama administration appears determined to make the change, citizens can go on the record in support of the rights of health-care workers who do not wish to be involved in immoral procedures. Without the protection of the “conscience clause,” doctors, nurses, and pharmacists may face penalties if they refuse to participate in abortion, sterilization, contraception, sex-change operations, in vitro fertilization, and other procedures that the Church condemns.
The US Conference of Catholic Bishops has set up a web site to guide American citizens interested in learning more about this controversy, and submitting comments on the proposed change.
Comments may be submitted electronically to the Department of Health and Human Services. Comments may also be mailed to:
Rescission Proposal Comments
Hubert H. Humphrey Building
200 Independence Avenue SW
Room 716G
Washington, DC 20201
With the 30-day comment period coming to an end, any comments submitted by letter should be sent by overnight mail.
All comments submitted to the Department of Health and Human Services are public documents, and will be available for viewing online.
http://www.catholicculture.org/news/features/index.cfm?recnum=60309
This is a tough issue. The responses actually may be a “darned if you do, darned if you don’t” situation. If not enough people comment, the government will assume it’s not a large issue, but if too many respond, then the government will assume it has to force doctors to “do their duty” regarding at least referrals if not outright treatment. And if it doesn’t immediately force doctors to make repugnant choices, then I would look to see it do what it can to ensure that only people who don’t object to abortion get to go to medical school. Maybe I’m just being paranoid here but I can see how the government can twist this whatever way it wants.
If some girl can sue and get $400,000 because someone objecting to her scarf violated her “religious concience”...
Well.....
“I would look to see it do what it can to ensure that only people who don’t object to abortion get to go to medical school.”
Agree.
Doctors not taking the Hippocratic Oath coupled with lowered value standards in medical schools (all schools for that matter) appears to have ‘progressed’ us to this point. The answer is clear to me but insofar as the Obama Admin. that’s a whole other matter. They will most likely reverse Bush’s clause - Catholic Hospitals will have to close - those hospitals will be taken over by the government and Nationalized. I’m paranoid as well. :)
I know in Britain, some Muslims don’t wash their hands because it goes against their religion. I don’t know how they resolved that issue.
Steven Ertelt is a member of Freerepublic and runs LifeNews.com
On the other hand, LifeSiteNews.com is a Canadian site with a number of writers working on articles...
I appreciate you pointing that out. :)
Bookmarked - thanks. :)
the governent will obey the Messiah and remove that regulation.
But other regulations will stay in place, until Congress removes them.
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