The National Health Service of Greater Glasgow and Clyde, regional provider of state health care, will attempt to overturn an appeal court ruling favourable to freedom of conscience for health care workers by appealing to Britain’s Supreme Court. Two midwives who, for reasons of conscience, refused to participate in the supervision and support of staff providing abortions successfully appealed a lower court ruling against them. The judgement of the appeal court was given in April. [Irish Post]
Category: Abortion
Draft Irish Abortion Law: Protection of Conscience
Testimony before the Joint Committee on Health and Children Houses of the Oireachtas (Tithe an Oireachtais) Dublin, Ireland 17-21 May, 2013
- 17 May, 2013
- Policy: Overview of Head of Bill
- Regulatory and Representative Bodies
- Obstetric Care Facilities: Larger Hospitals
- Obstetric Care Facilities: Smaller Hospitals
- 20 May, 2013
- Psychiatry and Perinatal Psychiatrists
- Psychiatry
- 21 May, 2013
- Medical Law
- Constitutional Law
- Medical Ethics
Irish physicians differ on grounds for abortion
Physicians testifying before a committee of the Oireachtas (Irish Parliament) about the proposed abortion law have expressed conflicting views about the bill.
One point of disagreement is the provision for abortion in the case of a woman threatening suicide. Many Irish psychiatrists have protested the expectation that they will assess pregnant women in such circumstances. The issue is particularly important because it appears that the proposed law prohibits conscientious objection when a pregnant woman is threatening suicide.
The master of the National Maternity Hospital, Dr. Rhona Mahony, and its clinical director, Dr Peter Boylan, asserted that suicidal threats do provide grounds for abortion. On the other hand, Dr. Sam Coulter Smith, master of the Rotunda Hospital, testified that there was no evidence to support the inclusion of suicidal intention as a reason for abortion, and that such a law would pose “major ethical dilemmas for obstetricians.” He also criticized the proposed law for failing to set a gestational limit for the procedure. [Irish Times]
The president of the College of Psychiatrists of Ireland, Dr. Anthony McCarthy, stated that there would likely never be evidence that would demonstrate whether or not providing abortion would prevent suicide by a pregnant woman. He asserted that the question to ask “is there ever a case where a woman will kill herself because of an unwanted pregnancy and, if so, what can we do to save her life and would that ever be a termination of pregnancy?”
Consultant perinatal psychiatrist Dr. John Sheehan pointed out that, in 40 years of practice, Irish perinatal psychiatrists had never encountered a pregnant woman expressing suicidal intention. According to Dr. Sheehan said the incidence of suicide in pregnancy is between one in 250,000 and one in 500,000, so that it would be impossible for psychiatrists to predict who would likely commit suicide. [Irish Times]
Irish bishops oppose new abortion law: cite concerns about freedom of conscience
A preliminary response from the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference to the proposed Protection of Life during Pregnancy Bill 2013 had criticized the bill on several grounds. Among their concerns they raise the issue of freedom of conscience:
The Bill also appears to impose a duty on Catholic hospitals to provide abortions. This would be totally unacceptable and has serious implications for the existing legal and Constitutional arrangements that respect the legitimate autonomy and religious ethos of faith-based institutions. It would also pose serious difficulties for the conscientious beliefs of many citizens. [Full statement]
The protection of conscience measure in the bill does not apply to hospitals or other institutions, denominational or otherwise.
Conscience clause in proposed Irish abortion law “passing the buck”
Fr Vincent Twomey, Emeritus Professor of Moral Theology at the University of Maynooth, has criticized the protection of conscience provision in the proposed Irish abortion law as “passing the buck”.
“It’s the Pontius Pilate answer. ‘I’m not going to do it but somebody else can do it for me’.”
Sean Cardinal Brady warned that the proposed law was “potentially menacing” for hospitals and for freedom of religion.[Herald]