Physicians not ‘politically correct’ re prenatal use of illicit drugs
October 6th, 2008 | Published by BRAHA Editor in Medicine & Health
By Sandra S. Bennett
The article also stated that “60% of the physicians who responded to our survey believe that pregnant women have a legal responsibility not to create a substantial risk to a newborn as a consequence of illicit drug use during pregnancy.” “Physicians were generally opposed to incarceration for drug and alcohol use during pregnancy, although they were very favorably inclined to make treatment for substance abuse compulsory (90%), as well as a condition of probation (82%), for pregnant women already in the criminal justice system, a policy presently known as “therapeutic jurisprudence.”
Of extreme interest was the final statement of the study which read: “Despite these caveats, we must admit to surprise at the relatively high level of agreement with measures regarding mandatory screening and treatment because these attitudes do not conform to the official policy statements of national medical organizations. This raises the interesting question of whether these organizations are expressing “politically correct” views as articulated by their leadership, rather than the view of their members at large.”
In 1990, when members of the drug culture did a survey to determine how many oncologists would recommend that their patients smoke pot, headlines around the world trumpeted the news that “40% of oncologists” would do such a thing. It turned out that this was 40% of those who had answered that particular question but few of those who had responded at all to the questionnaire had bothered to answer this question at all. Another example of “lies, damned lines and statistics.” So, where were the headlines screaming that 80+% of physicians would support legal measures when it came to pregnant women using illicit drugs?
Author: Sandra S. Bennett
Source: North West Center for Health & Safety
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