Here we have pharmacists who refuse to fill prescriptions from doctors who perform abortions. I find that pretty sickening.
I agree it is sickening, how can a doctor even call themselves a doctor when they aren't looking out for the patient but for there own beliefs. Do Jevoah's Witness doctors refuse to give blood transfusions out of interest? Surely it shouldn't be legal to practice medicine based on moral beliefs, "Sorry i won't operate on you as you're going to hell!"
I think in the UK Doctors have to give their patients all available options. either that or not enough are very moral...
That being said, being pregnant is not actually an illness that needs healing. Yes there are health risk's to certain groups and I’m for choice, but to state that these doctors are unethical to suggest an invasive procedure that comes with the risk of all surgery, to cure a problem that is likely not a health risk is a bit much, the're are, in the UK at least centres provided that discuss all the options. As to Jehovah's Witnesses doctors and nurses they withhold blood transfusions for Jehovah's Witnesses and I believe it is officially down to the doctors own conscience regards to non-Jehovah's Witnesses.
Sorry, but I do not agree. This comes all down to the "should people be forced to provide services to gay people if it offends their beliefs" issue again. In that thread, I argued that if you deliver a vital or essential service to the general public, you do not get to pick or choose. You do not get to decide who deserves treatment or not, who gets to live or die. You do not get to pass judgement on people and play God. Otherwise doctors or paramedics can withold treatment based on the patient's race, ethicity, beliefs, gender, sexual orientation... you name it. They stop being professionals. Doctors took the Hippocratic oath. Every health professional either implicitly or explicitly agrees to unconditionally do the best by their patients. Patients should be able to trust their health professional to do his/her best for them. It's in the contract. You don't like it, you find yourself another career.
It's not the same thing at all. As medical care often comes down to the doctors best informed guess as to the best form of treatment I don't see anything wrong with a doctor refusing to perfom or even recomend abortion for the vast majority of cases. Being pregnant is not an illness that needs to be cured, it's a natural process, and surigcal procedures all carry risks. If you then want to get really messy if its every health professional job to do the best by their patients then if a female comes in pregnant the professional now has two patients both could be currently healthy whilst the prospect of terminating one of them whilst putting the other at risk through surgery could be seen to not be in the best interest of either. Now I'm pro choice myself but I dont what to see abortion being used as a form of contraception.
It is when this refusal is not based on medical grounds, but personal beliefs. Yeah, let's get messy. Let's consider what happens to the child if it is not aborted. Research shows that there is no relationship between child abuse/neglect and availability of abortion (i.e. the "wantedness" of a child). However this may be because the unwanted children are given up for adoption instead. Indeed, research shows that where abortion is available, adoption rates drop significantly. However, when a woman opts for abortion, it is usually for a reason: she perceives to be unable to raise the child appropriately. This is not just perceived as a form of contraception: some hard choices have been made. Research shows that availability of abortion is indeed associated with improved average child health and living conditions, and reduction in opportunistic crime about 15-20 years later... Regardless, your argument has merit, but again, it is a valid consideration because it is a medical one, not one based on personal beliefs.
My point here is that there can quite often be a two perfectly good treatments or drugs for a doctor to administer, and this will come down to the doctor's personal belief as to which the best course is. Whose to say that it's their medical theory backing up their moral/personal beliefs or that its their moral/personal beliefs backing up their medical theory.
