Women’s Health and Rights

Healthcare should be patient-centric for all.

Patient-doctor relationship should be restored for all without any outside interference

Government, politicians, lawyers, judges and non-medical organizations should not interfere in medical care provided by doctors that is based on medical science and is evidence-based, whether it is between a man and his doctor or a woman and her doctor.

Pregnant women should not be punished or imprisoned for making healthcare decisions about themselves.

Doctors should not be punished or imprisoned for providing healthcare to patients based upon evidence-based medicine, individual variability of patients and their healthcare needs.

Healthcare should be based on medical science, scientific facts and the patient’s own beliefs and faith, which may vary even among those that belong to the same religion instead of conforming to rigid beliefs, interpretations or opinions of others.

Healthcare for women, including medical termination of pregnancy, should be provided based upon ensuring that the health of the woman is of utmost priority, upholding beliefs and informed consent of the pregnant woman as per her beliefs and faith and not those of other individuals, entities or organizations.

As per the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOG), delivery of fetus before 23 weeks has a 5%-6% survival rate with an almost universal (98%-100%) morbidity among the rare survivors. As per UK’s National Health Service (NHS), fetuses delivered before 22 weeks are not currently able to survive even if doctors try to save them.  As per the ACOG, about 1% of termination of pregnancies are done after 21 weeks and fewer than 1% are done in the third trimester for reasons that are critical to the life of the pregnant woman. Emergent or urgent cesarean section or induction of delivery as per medical science and the expertise of doctors to protect the life of the mother as well as the fetus instead of abortion are and can be provided.

Medical termination of pregnancy should be available primarily to ensure the health of pregnant women which includes risk to her life and to prevent grave injury to her physical and mental health.

Medical termination of pregnancy should be available to pregnant women when the continuation of pregnancy due to traumatic events of rape and incest can cause grave injury to the physical and mental health of the pregnant woman.

Perinatal palliative care as well as life-prolonging treatment that maximizes quality of life and comfort of newborns for life-limiting fetal conditions that are lethal, incurable or have minimal prospect of survival outside the uterus should be available. Similar to difficult medical situations in adults, patients’ next of kin who have the power to make medical decisions on their behalf (parent(s)) may choose or refuse to pursue life-prolonging treatments that may be heroic, of uncertain outcomes or may or may not conform to their values. Similar to difficult situations in adults, the goal of palliative care while trying to prolong life is to decrease the newborn’s suffering and respect and honor the values of the parents (next of kin) who have the power to make medical decisions on their behalf.

Government’s role in healthcare should be to ensure that the delivery of healthcare is seamless, affordable, and without any bureaucratic hurdles while respecting the right to personal liberty of patients, enshrined in our constitution, and their own personal beliefs, values and faith or the lack thereof, with the utmost priority being the health and well-being of all individuals – men and women. There should be no interference between doctors and patients in the medical care that is provided by doctors to patients that is based upon medical science and evidence-based medicine with individual variability as may apply, with the consent of the patient.