Women Contraception Method is Still a Taboo

One such highly inflammable topic is regarding women contraception and sterilization. Catholic institutions being the center of the discussion has never been in favor of providing contraceptives to women reason being that it is not a mandatory medical step for everyone to follow as it can be achieved by other ways.

The whole issue is centered on ‘Tubectomy’, a very common, simple way of women sterilization known as ‘Tubal ligations’ in Catholic hospitals where it is not allowed to practice under hospital laws.

Read More related healthcare blogs at Doctorvista.

Arousal of debate is due to:

The Atlantic journal has recently published a report of doctors of Catholic hospitals who are seriously concerned about the contraceptive sterilization being not applied on women already having C-sections in the Catholic hospitals.

Common practice in normal hospitals:

Doctors generally perform the procedure of sterilization during the C-section performed during child birth if mother’s health is under serious medical risk on another pregnancy or at mother’s will. This is done during C-section only because undergoing of mother through another surgery is not considered safe for her health.

Practice and belief of Catholic hospitals:

• The US Catholic bishops are not in favor of any type of medically referred contraceptive sterilization because they believe it to be a sin equivalent to abortion.
• This right to refusal of contraceptive sterilization was bestowed to the Catholic hospitals during the case decision of Roe v. Wade.
• Their strict belief is recently proved by Genesys Health System, a Catholic hospital in Michigan where a woman was stranded whose tubectomy was scheduled following C-section. In the later analysis of the matter it was found after the study that earlier when the hospital was secular it was not having issue regarding the contraceptive sterilization, it was totally personal decision of the patient but after the hospital went to the hands of Catholic bishops this has become a bio-ethical issue which is no longer remained personal.
• Some of the older doctors who were staunch believers of Catholic used to practice hysterectomy over tubal ligation which is a very dangerous operation from fitness and health point of view.

Patients who want convenience and health at the same time usually opt for tubal ligation as the safest method of sterilization contraceptive and with new modern methods like ‘Essure’ coming into practice there seems to be no place for any wishful exercise of Catholic bishops in such personal matter.

With the increase of 16% in the number of Catholic hospitals between 2001 and 2011 more probability of women (about 1 in every 6 women) going to these hospitals for the C-section arises leading to risk of denial of tubal ligation. Risk factor is very high in rural areas where there is no choice of hospitals as there is only a single hospital there.

In such serious situation insurance companies are also limiting choice of hospital of patients as in this emergency case generally people go by convenience and not by choice thus; they are required by Affordable Care Act after a debate on “contraceptive mandate”, to cover prescribed birth control measure at zero cost securing life and health of women.