Persuasive Speaking Abby Surprenant—2nd Place

NFA Forensics

18 May 201709:45

Summary

TLDRThe video discusses the troubling issue of Catholic hospitals denying life-saving care to women due to religious directives. It highlights cases where pregnant women, in need of urgent medical intervention, were refused treatment, resulting in life-threatening consequences. Despite federal laws requiring emergency care, Catholic hospitals often prioritize religious rules over patient health, sometimes hiding their affiliation and banned services from patients. The video calls for policy reforms, including transparency in hospital services and stricter enforcement of federal law to ensure women's safety in emergencies.

Takeaways

😟 Tamisha Means was denied appropriate care multiple times during her pregnancy, ultimately leading to a stillbirth and her nearly dying from infection.
🏥 Mercy Health Hospital, along with many other Catholic hospitals, follows religious directives that restrict certain medical procedures deemed 'intrinsically evil' by the Catholic Church, regardless of patient risk.
⚖️ Federal law mandates that hospitals must provide emergency medical services when life is at risk, but Catholic hospitals routinely deny miscarriage management, putting patients in danger.
😔 Many women are unaware that they are at Catholic hospitals, which often hide their affiliation, leading to confusion and delayed care during emergencies.
💉 Doctors at Catholic hospitals are forced to follow religious rules that sometimes conflict with their medical judgment, putting women's health at risk.
❌ Catholic hospitals are forbidden from referring patients to other facilities or writing referrals for procedures they cannot perform, leaving some women without options for life-saving interventions.
💸 Despite receiving billions in federal funding, Catholic hospitals continue to deny necessary medical care, violating both medical ethics and federal law.
🚨 There have been cases where women were forced to endure dangerous conditions, such as miscarrying outside hospitals that refused to treat them due to Catholic rules.
⛔ ACLU and other organizations have called for legal reforms, such as the Patient's Right to Know Act, to require hospitals to disclose services they cannot provide due to religious restrictions.
👩‍⚕️ The story highlights the urgent need for federal enforcement to ensure that religious rules do not override life-saving medical care, especially in emergencies.

Q & A

What happened when Tamisha Means first went to Mercy Health Hospital?
-Tamisha Means was 18 weeks pregnant when her water broke. She rushed to Mercy Health Hospital, where doctors reassured her that her baby was fine, gave her Tylenol, and sent her home, despite the baby having died.
How did Mercy Health Hospital handle Tamisha Means' condition when she returned later?
-When Tamisha returned nine hours later in severe pain, the hospital sent her home again. Only on her third visit, when she was hemorrhaging, did they deliver her stillborn baby. She nearly died from infection and was placed in the ICU.
Why were the doctors at Mercy Health not held personally negligent for their actions?
-The doctors were following hospital rules, which were based on Catholic directives that prohibit medical procedures deemed intrinsically evil by the Catholic faith, including certain emergency miscarriage treatments.
What conflict exists between Catholic hospital rules and federal law?
-Catholic hospitals follow religious directives that prohibit certain medical procedures, but federal law, specifically the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA), requires hospitals to provide life-saving services in emergencies, regardless of religious beliefs.
How does the lack of transparency affect patients at Catholic hospitals?
-Many patients are unaware they are at a Catholic hospital or what that implies for their care. Visible markers like crucifixes are being removed, and hospitals often rename themselves to hide their Catholic affiliation.
What are some of the consequences of Catholic hospitals denying emergency miscarriage management?
-Women’s lives are endangered as doctors at Catholic hospitals are forced to deny or delay life-saving interventions. This has led to infections, sepsis, and even death in some cases.
How do Catholic hospitals prioritize care when it comes to miscarriage or pregnancy complications?
-Catholic hospitals often prioritize the preservation of the fetus, even if it is no longer viable, over the health of the woman. This can lead to delays in care or outright denial of necessary medical procedures.
What did a report on Catholic hospitals reveal about the experiences of OBGYNs working there?
-A report revealed that 33% of OBGYNs at Catholic hospitals experienced severe conflict with the quality of care they could provide, with some unable to even refer patients for necessary medical procedures due to fear of losing their jobs.
What legal action has been taken to address the denial of care at Catholic hospitals?
-The Patient’s Right to Know Act, currently being introduced in 28 states, would require Catholic hospitals to inform patients upfront about any services they cannot provide due to religious restrictions.
What are some solutions proposed to address the issues with Catholic hospitals' denial of care?
-Proposed solutions include making it clear that federal funding will be pulled from Catholic hospitals that violate the law, passing the Patient’s Right to Know Act, and educating women about the importance of knowing whether their hospital is Catholic before seeking care.

Outlines

00:00

🚨 Negligence at Catholic Hospitals: A Fatal Risk to Women's Health

This paragraph narrates the harrowing experience of Tamisha Means, who, after experiencing water breakage at 18 weeks, was repeatedly sent home by doctors at a Catholic hospital despite severe pain and symptoms. The hospital followed Catholic rules that prohibit certain medical interventions, even when the baby's life was at risk. Despite federal laws mandating care when life is at stake, the hospital's adherence to religious directives led to a delayed delivery of her stillborn child, almost costing her life. This incident highlights the conflict between Catholic hospital policies and federal healthcare laws, putting women's lives in danger by denying necessary emergency care.

05:01

⚠️ The Conflict of Conscience: Doctors Struggle at Catholic Hospitals

This paragraph delves into the ethical dilemmas faced by doctors working at Catholic hospitals, where they are forced to prioritize religious directives over their medical judgment. Interviews reveal that 33% of OBGYNs feel conflicted about the quality of care they can provide, with some unable to offer life-saving treatments or even referrals, risking patients' lives. Specific cases are cited, including a woman forced to deliver her child outside the hospital and another who nearly died from heart failure. The text also discusses the repercussions for healthcare providers who defy church rules, such as Sister Mary McBride, who was excommunicated for allowing a life-saving procedure. The need for federal intervention and patient awareness is emphasized to prevent these dangerous situations.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Catholic Hospitals

Catholic Hospitals are healthcare institutions that follow the religious directives of the Catholic Church, particularly in matters related to reproduction. In the video, these hospitals are criticized for prioritizing religious doctrines over patient care, particularly in emergencies like miscarriages, where necessary medical procedures are denied.

💡Miscarriage Management

Miscarriage management refers to the medical procedures needed to handle a miscarriage safely. The video highlights how Catholic hospitals often deny emergency miscarriage management, putting women at risk by refusing life-saving procedures due to religious beliefs.

💡Ethical and Religious Directives (ERDs)

The Ethical and Religious Directives are guidelines provided by the Catholic Church that prohibit certain medical procedures, especially those related to reproduction, like abortion. The video explains how these directives force doctors in Catholic hospitals to deny care that could save a woman's life, such as fetal extraction during a miscarriage.

💡Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA)

EMTALA is a federal law requiring hospitals that receive Medicare funding to provide emergency medical care regardless of religious or other beliefs. The video discusses how Catholic hospitals sometimes violate this law by refusing to provide life-saving care, even when a patient's life is at risk.

💡Federal Law vs. Religious Beliefs

The video explores the tension between federal law, which mandates life-saving care, and the religious beliefs of Catholic hospitals, which can lead to the denial of certain procedures. This conflict can result in severe consequences for patients, including the death of both the mother and fetus in cases of miscarriage or other reproductive health emergencies.

💡Patient's Right to Know Act

The Patient's Right to Know Act is proposed legislation that would require Catholic hospitals to inform patients about the services they cannot provide due to religious restrictions. The video emphasizes how patients often do not realize they are in a Catholic hospital until it is too late to seek alternative care.

💡Sepsis

Sepsis is a life-threatening condition caused by the body's response to infection. In the video, sepsis is used as an example of how delayed or denied care at Catholic hospitals can lead to severe medical complications, as seen in a woman who nearly died after being sent home during a miscarriage.

💡Fetal Extraction

Fetal extraction is a medical procedure used to remove a fetus that has died or is causing harm to the mother. The video highlights how Catholic hospitals often refuse to perform this procedure during miscarriages, even when the mother's life is in danger, leading to preventable deaths.

💡Medicare Funding

Medicare funding refers to federal financial support provided to hospitals. The video criticizes Catholic hospitals for receiving billions of dollars in Medicare funding while refusing to follow federal laws like EMTALA, which requires emergency medical care for all patients, regardless of religious beliefs.

💡Conscientious Objection

Conscientious objection allows healthcare providers to refuse to perform certain procedures based on moral or religious beliefs. In the video, this concept is central to the denial of care in Catholic hospitals, where doctors are often forced to withhold necessary treatment due to institutional religious policies, even when they know it will harm the patient.

Highlights

Tamisha Means was sent home twice from Mercy Health despite her water breaking and being in excruciating pain.

Mercy Health and over 1,000 Catholic hospitals are banned from providing medical procedures deemed 'intrinsically evil' by the Catholic faith.

Federal law mandates that hospitals, even Catholic ones, must provide life-saving services regardless of religious beliefs.

Means nearly died from an infection after being denied miscarriage management, raising concerns about Catholic hospitals following religious doctrines over medical needs.

Catholic hospitals benefit from $115 billion in federal funding, yet their refusal to provide certain care violates federal law.

Patients often don't know they are at a Catholic hospital, as some hospitals remove religious markers or rename themselves.

Doctors at Catholic hospitals are often forced to go against their medical judgment, leading to compromised patient care.

33% of OBGYNs interviewed at Catholic hospitals reported a severe conflict with the quality of care they provided.

Catholic hospitals often refuse to refer patients to other providers for care they deem unacceptable, even if it puts patients' lives at risk.

A woman in Washington was forced to wait for a natural miscarriage despite the risks, laying in a hospital bed listening to her child's dying heartbeat for seven hours.

Doctors at Catholic hospitals are unable to provide emergency miscarriage care even when it risks infection and death.

Sister Mary McBride was excommunicated for authorizing a life-saving fetal extraction for a woman suffering from heart failure during a miscarriage.

The Department of Health and Human Services has the authority to pull funding from Catholic hospitals that do not comply with federal law, as it did with River District Hospital.

The Patients’ Right to Know Act is being introduced in 28 states to ensure that patients are informed about the services Catholic hospitals cannot provide.

Catholic hospitals prioritize the preservation of the fetus, even in cases where it endangers the mother's life, raising ethical and legal concerns.