Letter to Residents

THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF PRO-LIFE OBSTETRICIANS AND GYNECOLOGISTS

November 2009 Dear ObGyn Resident, Please allow us to introduce you to the American Association of ProLife Obstetricians and Gynecologists. We number about 2500 members and associates. We have existed as a SIG (Special Interest Group) of ACOG since the Supreme Courts Roe v. Wade in 1973. We reaffirm the unique value and dignity of individual human life in all stages of growth and development from fertilization onward. We are committed to our role as the caregiver for both the mother and her unborn child. And we stand in opposition to the “abortion on demand” mentality and practice that has become such a part of our society and culture in the past 35 years. (See our Mission Statement under “membership application” button on the home page.) As an Ob/Gyn resident, you stand at a defining point in your professional life. Strong voices within ACOG espouse elective abortion on demand as the standard of care for unwanted pregnancies. Often perinatologists are quick to recommend abortion as a “final solution” for in utero babies with various defects. Every Resident will, of necessity, need to develop his or her own values and practice regarding elective abortion. Be assured that there are many in this specialty who hold our view of the sanctity of all human life from fertilization onward, and of the physician’s role to protect and care for both the mother and her unborn child. We would encourage you to make this your own position. Here is a brief account of some of our recent involvement and actions: In 1995, we were integral in turning back the ACGME Mandate that all Ob/Gyn resident training programs must have elective abortion as standard training. The resulting legislation (Medical Training NonDiscrimination Act of 1995) insures that you cannot be required against your conscience to participate in abortions in your training program. In 2002, in a strong letter to all ACOG national, district, and state officers, we opposed ACOG’s attempt to eliminate the Weldon Amendment, legislation that frees us from obligation to do or to refer for abortions. In 2005, our Brief to the US Supreme Court was a vital consideration in the Court’s declaring the Partial Birth Abortion Ban constitutional. In 2008, we have been heavily involved in fighting for your right of conscience in your practice of medicine. In particular, the ACOG Ethics Committee’s opinion #385, which threatens your Ethical Standing as a Fellow if you do not either do, or refer for, elective abortion. This “right of conscience in medical decision making” issue will not go away, and AAPLOG will stay engaged with this issue, as it is a core value for us. We are strongly supportive of the U.S. Dept of HHS’s new regulations (January 2009) to insure conscience protection for medical professionals. But these regulations are subject to the desires of the Administration currently holding political power, and could be easily eliminated. In the 2009 healthcare legislation discussion, we strongly oppose tax funding of abortion, and strongly support protection of our conscience rights to neither do nor refer for abortion. We remain very involved in studying the long term adverse consequences for women’s health which are associated with induced abortion—including increased mental health difficulties, increased suicide and other mortality issues, adverse reproductive risks (especially increased PreTerm Birth, and increased breast cancer risk. Very little of this information can be found in peer-reviewed journals in the U.S., as the U.S. data base on who has even had an abortion is based on voluntary reporting, and thus is extremely inadequate, making meaningful study very difficult. We get much of our information from countries with socialized medical systems (which have much more complete data bases and compter-linkage potential than our country has). We encourage you to read our membership application, and to join us if you agree with our mission statement. We also encourage you to send your email address to us at prolifeob@aol.com. We send out a weekly education/informational letter written by Ob/Gyns, and for Ob/Gyns. We would be happy to answer any questions you may have about AAPLOG. Write us at prolifeob@aol.com, or call us at 616 644 5313 (Eastern Time Zone). We stand ready to help and support you in any way we can. Sincerely, From the Board Members of AAPLOG