Rape Victim Denied Care At Catholic Hospital

[debrand]

http://www.spiegel.de/international/ger ... 78215.html

"I immediately suspected that this young woman might have been drugged with a date-rape drug, so that rape was not to be ruled out," Maiworm told the paper. The woman reportedly complained of pains and difficulty going to the bathroom and wore soiled clothes.

With her permission, Maiworm contacted the police and informed the woman of the risks of pregnancy and gave her a prescription for the "morning-after pill." She told the paper that she then called the gynecology department at the neighboring St. Vincent's Hospital to arrange for the woman to have a gynecological exam, only to be told by the doctor there that such an exam would not be possible.

According to the paper, the doctor told Maiworm that the hospital's ethics commission, after consulting with Cardinal Joachim Meisner, had decided not to conduct exams after sexual attacks, so as not to be in the position of having to advise on possible unwanted pregnancies resulting from the attacks.

[1CrazyMama]

:shock:

I guess the good thing is that attention has been brought to the issue and will probably force a change in the policy. That poor girl though...

[Cran]

I've followed this case a bit closer, as it happened in Germany, and obviously, the hospital is run by a religious order, who claims there has been a "misunderstanding". Trouble is, Catholic hospitals do not give out prescriptions for "Plan B" here or dispense the pill itself, so, treating victims of rape are generally a "problem" for them.

But it has also been clarified that it is NOT in accordance with the guidelines for Catholic hospitals to deny care to rape victims, and that he hospital has been at fault. I think they don't deny that very energetically themselves.

[slh12280]

We deny rape victims care because that is what God would want. How special. Caring for people in their time of need? Not moral. I am glad my morality system is different than theirs.

Okay, Cran, thanks for clarifying that. Still doesn't make it right, though.

[doggie]

Got to love policy over people. one of the things I hate about the catholic church. Always more important to follow doctrine over helping people. But we are the ones with no real morals.

[DonnaSmith]

So if the Jehovah's Witnesses set up a hospital that refused to give people in car accidents blood, would we be okay with that? Of course not. We would say they are not really a hospital. The same is true of Catholic hospitals that refuse emergency care to victims of sexual assault. St Vincent's Hospital needs to change it's name (and tax status.)

[Minerva]

I'd say that all Catholic hospitals should get out of the business of providing sexual assault care, and good for them for knowing that it's wrong to take on patients whom you won't be able to provide with a full range of options. Problem is, Catholic hospitals are often the only hospital certain people can use. Maybe institutions that hold the keys to people's health shouldn't be in the business of denying anyone care of any kind.

[NeonJungle]

Here's a rebuttal. I cannot fathom turning a rape victim away; talk about adding insult to injury in its worst form.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/catholic-church-counters-claim-its-hospitals-turned-rape-victim-away-a-878215.html

Catholic Hospitals in Cologne: Rape Victim Reportedly Refused Exam

A 25-year-old possible rape victim was reportedly refused a basic exam at two Catholic hospitals in Cologne last month. The Church says the impression that rape victims can't be treated at Catholic hospitals is "false."

The case of a possible rape victim who was reportedly refused treatment by two Catholic hospitals in Cologne last month has prompted a strong reaction by the Catholic Church and local victim advocacy organizations.

The local daily newspaper, the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger, published an article Wednesday detailing the experience of an emergency center doctor, Irmgard Maiworm, one night last month. Maiworm told the paper that on Dec. 15, a 25-year-old woman came in to see her, accompanied by her mother.

The woman told the doctor that she had been out with friends on Friday night, and that at one point she went blank, not remembering anything until coming to on a bench in a different part of the city Saturday afternoon.

"I immediately suspected that this young woman might have been drugged with a date-rape drug, so that rape was not to be ruled out," Maiworm told the paper. The woman reportedly complained of pains and difficulty going to the bathroom and wore soiled clothes.

With her permission, Maiworm contacted the police and informed the woman of the risks of pregnancy and gave her a prescription for the "morning-after pill." She told the paper that she then called the gynecology department at the neighboring St. Vincent's Hospital to arrange for the woman to have a gynecological exam, only to be told by the doctor there that such an exam would not be possible.

According to the paper, the doctor told Maiworm that the hospital's ethics commission, after consulting with Cardinal Joachim Meisner, had decided not to conduct exams after sexual attacks, so as not to be in the position of having to advise on possible unwanted pregnancies resulting from the attacks.

Maiworm told the paper that the doctor did not change her mind, despite having been told that she had already written the woman a prescription for the morning-after pill. A colleague of Maiworm's was given a similar explanation at another Catholic hospital in Cologne, according to the paper. Both hospitals are run by the Foundation of the Cellites of St. Mary.

'A Misunderstanding'

On Thursday, the Catholic Church denied that it was turning potential rape victims away. The archdiocese of Cologne issued a statement, saying: "We regret very much that the impression has been given to the public that rape victims are no longer able to be treated in Catholic hospitals. That is false." It said that rape victims receive necessary treatment in the hospitals, including the securing of forensic evidence.

The Foundation of the Cellites said in a statement that a misunderstanding led to the woman being turned away, and that there was an internal investigation of the case underway. A spokesman for the foundation said they regretted the misunderstanding.

The family planning organization Pro Familia was "appalled" at the news of the case, its director Sören Bangert told the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger. "When, after a possible rape, a woman is denied even an examination, that, to me, is a failure to render assistance," Bangert told the paper.

Bangert added that women and the police should know that Cologne University's Women's Clinic provides women assistance around the clock.

[Bloo]

The only misunderstanding is that the Catholic Hospital thought that this young lady would roll over and let them be. They were wrong, and now they're backpedaling.

[paganhomeschooler]

They're doing an internal investigation, bless their hearts. I bet it will be as thorough as the ones they did on altar servers accusing priests of being pedophiles, right? :roll:

[Destiny]

I've had a couple glasses of wine, so I'm just going to say.....WHAT THE FUCKING FUCK IS THIS BULLSHIT.....and walk away.

[BravaAmica]

Can we PLEASE get religion out of health care?! Pretty please?!

[Jana814]

Can we PLEASE get religion out of health care?! Pretty please?!

Have to agree!! The big hospital by me is a St. but it's no longer run by a catholic organization (they just didn't change the name).

[BravaAmica]

Have to agree!! The big hospital by me is a St. but it's no longer run by a catholic organization (they just didn't change the name).

I'm lucky that I live in an area that has a lot of excellent hospitals, so if I don't want to go to a Catholic hospital, I don't have to. I certianly wouldn't go to one for well woman care or pre-natal care nor would I deliver a baby in one. Just too many ways the Catholic can fuck you up because it's "God's will."

[ILoveJellybeans]

This shouldnt be legal. Hospitals shouldnt be allowed to be religious organisations. They should treat anyone nomatter what, because that what theyre supposed to do.

[fakepigtails73]

Have to agree!! The big hospital by me is a St. but it's no longer run by a catholic organization (they just didn't change the name).

My hospital likewise kept the "St" prefix.. Not a catholic hospital anymore, in fact they're university-affiliated (hence the reason why I'm often asked if an intern can assist the doctor during my appointments) so they have lots of research grants.

Shame on the Cologne hospital. :evil:

[splork]

That's really disappointing. I always think of Germany as being completely secular and immune from the problems we have here, but I guess that's not the case.

More than half our states don't require hospitals to dispense emergency contraception to rape victims. http://www.ncsl.org/issues-research/hea ... -laws.aspx

Women being able to get adequate health care at Catholic hospitals is an issue that's really important to me. I would guess that in states that haven't specifically addressed the issue, emergency contraception might not be available at certain non-religious public hospitals because some religious whackjob in a position of authority there has quietly arranged things that way.

Of course EC is only one small part of the puzzle. I don't believe there is any law in any state that addresses some of the other questionable practices of certain Catholic hospitals. It's difficult to find out before you have a medical emergency whether the Catholic hospital in your area will perform an abortion to save your life, will use methotrexate for ectopic pregnancy, or whether they provide Ella (which is more effective than PlanB) for emergency contraception. Some Catholic hospitals will do all these things and some won't. Catholic hospital groups are actually doing pretty well and are buying up a lot of formerly public hospitals, so this is going to be a problem for more and more of us.

I've contacted my state legislator in the past re: the methotrexate issue and life-saving measures issues, but she didn't seem all that interested. Thankfully, EC is required to be made available to rape victims in my state.

edited for typo

[Cran]

Germany is really not very secular at all, even if many people are quite secular.

- Church taxes

- Pastors and priests often paid by the state

- Hospitals, schools etc. run by orders/churches largely financed by the state

- Religious education in schools (mandatory subject, if you're not a believer, you get ethics/philosophy instead)