Rape victims have option of getting emergency contraception By Sarah Boyd
Digg This!I found this article in the Green Bay Press Gazette today. Given the topics it discusses, I thought it would be a perfect fit for BTW.
Rape victims have option of getting emergency contraception
A new law requiring medical professionals to provide emergency contraception for patients of sexual assault — with unbiased and medically factual information — means a change to the local health-care system.
To some, it’s a welcome chance for victims of sexual assault to get the peace of mind they deserve. To others, it violates constitutional rights and religious beliefs.
Assembly Bill 377, coined the Compassionate Care Bill, states hospitals that provide emergency services must immediately administer emergency contraception and necessary subsequent doses upon the request of a victim.
The Department of Health and Family Services will monitor hospitals for compliance. Medical professionals who refuse must pay up to $5,000 for each violation.
Gov. Jim Doyle signed the bill in March, stating sexual assault victims deserve the “most comprehensive and compassionate services” available.
However, Dr. Amy Schueckler, an OB-GYN at the A & A Alexandrina Center of Green Bay, said the services violate her religious beliefs and are rules she does not feel comfortable complying with.
“I believe it does go against the First Amendment for freedom of speech or religion because there are a number of faiths that understand that the emergency contraception has as one of its mechanisms of action to destroy life,” she said. “That is not what they believe is proper or true.”
Patricia Finder-Stone, a retired registered nurse from De Pere, said emergency contraception prevents a pregnancy but does not cause an abortion, which can be a misperception. The passing of the Compassionate Care Bill is a positive step for reproductive health care, she said.
“It will certainly give the women a lot of relief,” she said. “The trauma of rape is in itself devastating for any woman, and the feeling that you might be pregnant as the result of this assault, and having to carry a child would be a lifetime of memory of that dreadful assault.”
Bellin Health, Aurora BayCare Medical Center and St. Mary’s Hospital Medical Center refer sexual assault patients to St. Vincent Hospital’s sexual assault program.
Dr. Chris Watson, chief medical officer at Bellin, said once the patient is determined to not have any immediate life-threatening injuries, they are sent to St. Vincent’s sexual assault nurse examiner.
Although St. Vincent’s mission falls in line with the Catholic Church, Watson said he believes the hospital will comply with the state.
St. Vincent officials have stated they will continue to follow the Wisconsin Catholic Conference position to remain neutral on the issue, said Sean Schultz, marketing communication specialist at St. Vincent.
“We follow state guidelines as all the hospitals do,” she said.
Matt Sande, director of legislation for Prolife Wisconsin, said the group is looking into challenging the bill on the basis that it is unconstitutional.
Schueckler said the bill puts medical professionals in a tough spot as they are being forced to comply with a law that goes against a number of ethical beliefs.
“Personally, I would not distribute a pill that would kill another young life,” she said. “I’m sympathetic to the other physicians and professionals that are obliged legally to do something against their morals.”
Finder-Stone said the patient’s needs come first, and that includes the option to take an emergency contraceptive.
“That’s No. 1 in nursing ethics,” she said.
Nancy Nusbaum, former director of the state’s crime victim services, said a sexual assault victim deserves a full range of options at such a critical time — no questions asked.
“When a patient, especially a patient who’s traumatized, goes to a medical professional … they expect that that medical professional is going to do everything in the universe to help them,” she said. “And not draw a line somewhere in between.”
