Kimberly Farmer, Midterm
Given the history of this hospital and the diverse community it supports, policy should be put in place to ensure that issues surrounding the hospitals services, namely assisted reproductive technologies and prenatal testing, are addressed. In creating this policy, we, the hospital, will give community members the knowledge and autonomy necessary to choose their own medical treatment plans. Our plan is to create an inclusive environment that caters to all cultures and religious backgrounds without putting one above another.
One of the first issues to be addressed is whether to subsidize abortions and related services for under-insured patients. Private hospitals have the right to turn anyone away who they don’t think can pay. However, only turning away patients who cannot afford an abortion makes a value statement against abortions that is rooted in the Catholic church. If the hospital is in fact non-denominational, it should either turn away all under-insured patients for all services, or subsidize all services for all uninsured patients. Such a clause will ensure consistency in the hospitals values and proceedings. Given that the hospital previously subsidized services for under-insured patients, the hospital should subsidize abortion services as well. This would include IVF treatments and prenatal testing, including amniocentesis, since a non-denominational church wouldn’t have adverse feelings toward such treatments. In addition, hospitals should not encourage families to allow unused embryos for research. According to the Catholic Church, “The human being must be respected—as a person—from the very first instant of his existence” (Donum Vitae,147) meaning that there must be respect to human embryos. Since a large portion of the hospitals users will likely find the suggestion to provide unused embryos for research offensive, this service should not be advertised nor encouraged. Patients may be informed of such opportunities, but there should be no pressure or encouragement to comply.
In terms of clerical counseling, services should be allowed since they can be very therapeutic during the process of undergoing medical treatment (Ginsburg, 37). However, these services should not be limited to Catholic clergy as all denominations should have representation to support the diverse community. Doctor have complained that Catholic clergy often persuade patients against reproductive technologies that doctors find beneficial. Such guidance is said to be interfering with the physician’s work. Clergy allowed in the hospital should be informed of their role to provide patient support and spiritual guidance, not medical advice. As stated in Testing Women, Testing the Fetus, “A counselor should, as a matter of principle, support whatever decision regarding testing and pregnancy outcome that a woman or a couple makes” (Rapp, 58). In turn, physicians should respect religious beliefs and not force the biomedical model onto their patients.
Hospital funders should be made aware of the policy changes when they are asked to continue their funding. In terms of nurses, the hospital will need to have nurses that are capable of handling a multitude of tasks, but it is known that the historically Catholic nursing staff may have reservations about preforming the hospital’s new services. It is known that, “moral and ethical questions of concern to abortion activists are intertwined in the construction of self, social action, and historical experience” (Ginsburg, 197). Therefore, it is not the hospital’s duty to unpack all of the qualms, but to ensure a consistent policy that respects all backgrounds. A patient should never encounter a nurse that is unwilling to provide a service because of a personal belief. That being said, nurses who are unwilling to perform certain reproductive procedures will be placed in ward where they will not encounter such tasks. Nurses should not be punished for having values that conflict with the positon, however they still have an obligation to the patient. This means that nurses may not openly deny a patient treatment, but rather, speak to their supervisor to find an immediate replacement. From now on, nurses being hired will be asked about their willingness to preform reproductive services and current nurses will be asked to disclose their ability to comply with these procedures. Ginsburg writes, “As with any political controversy in a complex society, the abortion debate changes quickly as both the local and national situation changes. (Ginsburg, 94). In order to create an inclusive, and long lasting policy, there should be a stable and sustainable policy that neither harms the patient or staff nor creates an uncomfortable environment.
Citations:
Donum Vitae In Shanon, Thomas A. and Lisa Sowle Cahill. “Religion and Artificial Reproduction: An Inquiry into the Vatican “’Instruction on Respect for Human Life in its Origin and on the Dignity of Reproduction.’” Crossroad, 1988.
Ginsburg, Faye D. Contested Lives : The Abortion Debate in an American Community, Updated Edition. University of California Press, 1989.
Rapp, Rayna. Testing Women, Testing the Fetus: The Social Impact of Amniocentesis in America. Routledge, 2000.
I will comment. -SL
I will comment!
Hi Kimberly,
The community members will appreciate having autonomy over what treatment plans they will buy. It is important that the hospital policy benefits the community members. Although the hospital is now non-denominational, the donors of the hospital are still prominent Irish Catholic donors who may take issue with the subsidization of abortion services. In terms of donating embryos for research, the Catholic Church associates IVF with abortion because not all embryos are implanted. These embryos will go to waste, so why not donate them to potentially life saving research? I agree with you that there should be no pressure to donate but the patient be made aware of the impact one embryo makes for future technological advances.
I don’t agree with keeping clerical counseling within the hospital; however, if I were to keep religious counseling I would also allow clerical counseling of other religions not limiting it to Catholic clergy. As I emphasized before, the hospital services should reflect the people that it is serving. The influx of people from different backgrounds and religions calls for an update in hospital services as well. Both clerical counselors and doctors should respect the patient and not push their views onto their decisions.
The hospital funders may not be happy about the new policy changes. Perhaps there is a way to reach out to not only prominent Irish Catholic families in the area but prominent donators of different religious backgrounds. My only concern is that there will not be enough nurses to serve the patients that would like to get abortions since the budget is tight for hiring new nurses. Is there potentially a way to have a meeting with the nurses that are uncomfortable with performing these tasks to see where the discomfort stems from? I agree with you that the nurses have an obligation to the patient and should not openly deny a patient treatment. If the hospital can figure out if there is any way for nurses to help in an indirect manner instead of being in the operating room, which may also be useful. Thank you for your more inclusive policy proposal.
-Selina
Kimberly,
I feel that your proposal would be more cohesive if you gave background information on the persona you are using to write the piece. The argument you make in your second paragraph is logical but I feel that one could argue that the expense of the operation and the necessity of it (as deemed by medical professionals) could be valid reasons why a hospital might not cover the expensive of a procedure. I do not follow your argument against embryo testing. Why would Catholicism influence this procedure but not abortion and assisted reproduction technologies? How does respect for a fetus equate to not doing research? What if nurses decide to quit because of new policies? Is there sufficient funding for new hires? I feel like that’s a factor you might want to bring up in your final paper.
Victoria
Hi Kimberly and all,
Thanks for this. Your paper is quite well written and makes good use of sources (though it should probably use more of them). It is a little underdeveloped, in the sense that you simply state a policy preference without much explanation of how you arrived at it, why you think it is the right policy and how you would respond to potential critiques. My advice for the final is to expand in these directions and also give a more detailed account of how the readings are helping to inform you view– or why you disagree with some of them. I don’t have much more to say because, as noted above, what you did do was well written and sourced. I also think your commentators made some good suggestions that you should follow up on.
Hey, Kimberly
I like your paper. It is short and concise. You have a very consistent point of view toward the questions of the medical proposal. However, I do have couple questions after reading your paper. First, I think whether the hospital is able to provide subsidized the service is based on many factors. You only mention the religious factor that “ If the hospital is, in fact, non-denominational, it should either turn away all under-insured patients for all services or subsidize all services for all uninsured patients.” It will be more convincing if you also talk about the financial aspect of the hospital. As we all know abortion services and IVF treatments are not cheap, where does money come from? From the Catholic doners? Will they donate money to support these procedures? Second, I agree that clerical counseling should “not be limited to Catholic clergy as all denominations should have representation to support the diverse community.” However, what are specific types of clergies will you allow? How would you prevent them from giving out medical advice? Third, I love the idea that in the future before hiring the nurse, the hospital should ask whether they want to perform abortion services. What are some other ways to solve the nurse issue? My suggestion is to hire some nursing interns who are willing to do the procedure.
I also found a few minor grammar issues and typos. Hope these suggestions are helpful:
(1) policy should be put in place to ensure that issues surrounding the hospitals services, namely assisted reproductive technologies and prenatal testing, are addressed.
-should be “hospital’s”
(2) Doctor have complained that Catholic clergy often persuade patients against reproductive technologies that doctors find beneficial.
-should be “persuades”
(3) but it is known that the historically Catholic nursing staff may have reservations about preforming the hospital’s new services.
-should be “performing”
(4) Nurses who are unwilling to perform certain reproductive procedures will be placed in ward where they will not encounter such tasks.
-do you mean by “inward”?
(5) Nurses should not be punished for having values that conflict with the positon
-should be “position”
(6) Nurses being hired will be asked about their willingness to preform reproductive services and current nurses will be asked to disclose their ability to comply with these procedures.
-should be “performing”
let me know if you have any questions.
best,
Kiraney