Christian doctors' group protests rolling back 'conscience' rule
(CNN) -- A organization of Christian physicians argued Wednesday against an impending rollback of a federal rule allowing health care workers to refuse to provide abortions, saying it's discriminatory.... Under the rule, workers in health care settings -- from doctors to janitors -- can refuse to provide services, information or advice to patients on subjects such as contraception, family planning, blood transfusions and even vaccine counseling if they are morally against it.
There are few things that anger me more in this life than narrow-minded religious zealots who feel that their beliefs trump everything...even the well-being of those who might be harmed by their adherence to said beliefs. How doctors who have sworn to uphold the Hippocratic Oath can see no conflict in refusing to perform certain medical procedures because of their moral and religious beliefs is beyond me. I have no problem with their right to hold whatever beliefs happen to get them through the night. What I refuse to countenance is their contention that they have the perfect right to refuse to provide whatever medical care happens to violate their sensibilities. If you feel that strongly about certain aspects of medicine...well, you really ought to find another line of work, don'tchathink??
You're a doctor; you took an oath to care for the sick and the infirm. You don't get to pick and choose what care is appropriate for a patient based on your own narrow moral and religious beliefs. If I'm experiencing a medical emergency, I need (and deserve) to know that the doctor hovering over me isn't going to deny me a blood transfusion based on his overheated religiosity. If a pregnant woman needs prenatal care, she needs (and deserves) to be made aware of the full range of options available to her- not just the options that pass moral and ideological muster with her doctor.
The rolling back of the "conscience clause" should be a no-brainer and not even open for debate. It never should have been put in place to begin with. In the same way we don't allow policemen and firemen to go on strike, there are some lines of work where the public interest trumps all- period, end of story, no questions allowed. If you're a doctor (or a medical professional of any sort) and you have a moral problem with performing a procedure that is within the scope of work of your speciality, you need to be willing to provide that care. If you cannot see your way clear to do so, you need to find another line of work- period, end of story, no questions allowed. To do otherwise would run the risk of putting those under your care at needless and unnecessary risk. Or are you really willing to put your narrow religiosity above the well-being of your patients? If the answer to that question is "yes", you might want to give some thought to re-reading the Hippocratic Oath...or finding another line of work- one where your overheated religiosity can't kill people.
