Full terminations begin at CGH
Cavan was the last maternity hospital in country to offer full service.
Local bishops have backed the rights of local healthcare workers who chose “not to participate” after full termination of pregnancy services became available at Cavan General this week.
Cavan was the last maternity hospital in the country to start offering a full service after Tipperary last year.
It is Government policy that termination services, under the 2018 Act, should be provided in all 19 of the country's maternity hospitals.
Confirmation of a start date in Cavan was provided by new Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill last month.
In response to the latest development, Bishop Martin Hayes of Kilmore, and Bishop Larry Duffy of Clogher, issued a joint statement, saying they “stand with staff” who refuse to be involved in abortion procedures.
“We urge that the staff of our hospitals are assured of their freedom of conscience not to participate in the procurement of abortions. We stand with those staff, who refuse to be involved in abortion procedures and in this way promote and protect human life. We ask that the integrity of their stance not impact upon the progression of their career paths within the health services.”
Aontú's Sarah O'Reilly, who left Fianna Fáil in response to the party leadership's stance on the abortion issue, said that Cavan had represented the “last bastion of safety for the unborn”.
The local Senator acknowledged “the many pro-life doctors, nurses and staff” at Cavan General who “put their principals before their own career advancement” and promotion possibilities.
“When you consider that this is quite literally a life and death issue, it is deeply troubling how little interest those who pushed so hard for repeal have in talking about the massive increase in abortions. There is a serious need for the new Minister for Health to adopt a different approach. It is a scandal that all the focus at present is on making abortion more widely available rather than putting supports in place so that no woman feels pressured down the road of abortion.”
She added it was a “scandal that all the focus at present is on making abortion more widely available” rather than putting supports in place so that “no woman feels pressured down the road” to seek a determination.
“The right to life is the defining issue of our time. That will continue to be the case regardless of what the law permits.”
The HSE says that all maternity units provide care for women with a complication in pregnancy and where there is a risk to life or health of the woman.
All sites also provide services relating to managing complications arising from termination; appropriate care and supervision for women following a diagnosis of fatal foetal abnormality, and referral to the appropriate tertiary unit; as well as care and supervision in cases where maternal health/life is at risk.
See this week's newspaper for full report.