I have recently become alarmed for pregnant women in my area, noting that the local Catholic hospital has been heavily advertising “services” aimed at them. On the one hand, I find this disturbing because I want Catholic hospitals gone, out of business, not advertising and attracting naïve customers. On the other hand, perhaps the need for so much advertising is a good sign, a step on their path to bankruptcy if potential patients fail to respond. I hope! Hospitals relying upon “religious principles” for medical treatment guidelines, instead of scientific evidence-based medicine and the highest standards of care for all patients, should be outlawed.
A Catholic hospital can be a terrible place to try to access reproductive services if anything goes wrong. As most of us know, but well documented for example last year in the New England Journal of Medicine, most Catholic hospitals restrict access to birth control and abortion, even in cases of rape or incest, or fetal death, or lifesaving treatment for the mother (admittedly, some hospital ethics committees will approve abortion in such circumstances, but there is no guarantee and this could cause delay in treatment that could lead to death). Slightly less well known is that they also tend to restrict access to IVF, transgender care, and end-of-life care. They are everywhere we don’t want them to be: As of 2016, 10 of the largest US healthcare systems were Catholic and 46 of sole community hospitals were Catholic (where other hospitals are too remote to provide care within a reasonable time frame).
Perhaps worse, according to the same NEJM source, hospitals’ names may not provide adequate clues to their Catholic status, only 6% of patients surveyed consider religious affiliation when choosing a hospital, and most prospective patients assume that at least birth control pills and tubal ligation are provided in Catholic hospitals (they typically are not), Typically, patients will not be informed of any restrictions even when patients request appointments for reproductive care, unless the patients realise that they need to specifically ask about restrictions.
How much impact these stances have on women’s health is unclear, because typically these hospitals do not allow research into these questions. But it is obvious to me, even as a very lapsed Catholic myself, that religion-based healthcare in defiance of best medical practices will result in poor outcomes.
The current main marketing device is the Catholic hospital advertising itself as “designated baby-friendly”. This is a WHO- and UNICEF-based initiative to encourage breast feeding immediately after birth. They encourage rooming in and educate women on the health benefits of breast feeding. I remember when breast feeding was discouraged in less developed countries to enhance sales of formula, so I fully support this initiative. However, if the designation is being corrupted to promote Catholic hospitals over others, then its use needs to be rethought, with care taken that such designations are only given to hospitals that are also woman-friendly.
If you live in an area with only a Catholic hospital, consider engaging your community to support your local hospital whilst getting rid of its Catholic affiliation. If you live in an area with many hospitals like I do, and you see these commercials, tell everyone — a “baby-friendly” hospital is not necessarily a woman-friendly hospital. Nor even all that friendly to a fetus in trouble.
