Is it ok to ask a new doctor of their religious views?

[QuestLove]

I hope that this is the right place to put this question.

Its it ok to ask your new doctor what his or her religious views are? OR is that very rude or asking for trouble?

I had problems stemming from religious discrepancy between myself and a few doctors I had years ago. Basically, in a nutshell they were anti-catholic (not in a rabid way, but just in strong personal beliefs) and the relationships with these doctors were strained when they found out I returned to my Catholic roots. There were also problems in carrying out some of their advices- things that went against my faith.

I’m now having to find a new doctor, and I just wondered if this was something I could bring up or ask the new physician. Do I have a right to know or ask? Or is this rude and too personal? I don’t want to be too personal as I feel that would be unethical and maybe rude, but I have noticed that religious views can effect the type of care you will receive and whether or not one can carry out the doctor’s advice.

I just wanted to know others take on this, and how they handled such situations. I know that for most medical help, what religion one is or is not does not matter, but there are instances where it does. If you are Catholic, is it better you have a Catholic doctor? Should a Catholic have only a Catholic doctor?

Thanks in advance for any replies.

It is too personal to ask someone that question. What is appropriate is to let the doctor know your views and beliefs on certain medical issues and find out if he/she is supportive.

 

[EasterJoy]

Very true… for some odd reason, I think I still would feel comfortable with someone like this- just so they understand where I’m coming from I guess. Probably not the right way of looking at it though.

I don’t think that is a wrong way of looking at it. I only think we need to be careful about the assumptions we make about people providing medical care. It pays to ask questions, to make our own needs clear, and to realize that we live in a world of litigation that doesn’t always leave physicians as free to practice as they otherwise would be able to do.

 

[QuestLove]

For me…it’s too personal and downright rude.

If my doctor can’t respect my religious viewpoints…I can take my business elsewhere.

I know where my midwife, GP and pediatrician stands…they clearly aren’t practicing Catholics.

But, they do know my viewpoint and where I stand and that is all that matters.

They are darn good at what they do and I trust them with my health and my children’s health.

I really don’t care that my midwife favors birth control. That isn’t my business…but it is hers to know that I won’t go on any kind of birth control or get my tubes tied and hers to respect.

I think this is how most devout people deal with it.
For example someone who is JW will want to tell their primary care Doctor their beliefs about blood transfusions etc.

 

[Allegra]

I know you didn’t ask this question of me, but most of my doctors are also Catholic.

I found my GYN through the One More Soul web site. She is Catholic and prayed with me before my latest surgery. It was wonderful.

I found my general doctor through his wife, while at church. I wasn’t feeling well. And had to sit down. She offered to have her husband look at me. I ended up going to Urgent Care, because I thought it was rude to bother him on a Sunday. But I started see him not long after that.

My dentist has an ad on the back of the bulletin.

My ophthalmologist just happened to be Catholic.

My orthopedic doctor is married to someone I taught with, at church.

The only doctor I use that isn’t Catholic, or at least I don’t know if he is Catholic, is my rheumatologist. But he hasn’t said anything that would cause me concern.

If you really want Catholic doctors, ask around the parish.

Or, look at the ads on the back of the parish bulletin!

 

[captainrick]

Unless relevant to your care, I think neither you nor the physician should be asking about religion. I’ve had many physicians throughout my life and this has never come up.

How did your physician find out about your Catholic roots?

 

[AnneElizabeth]

Or, look at the ads on the back of the parish bulletin!

Unfortuantley for me, the type of doctor I need won’t be found there, but I did look for a dentist using this!

 

[AnneElizabeth]

Unless relevant to your care, I think neither you nor the physician should be asking about religion. I’ve had many physicians throughout my life and this has never come up.

How did your physician find out about your Catholic roots?

She said something against the pope which was not a truth, (it was a flat out lie that’s being touted around in some circles). I was trying to give her the correct information coming from the side of what Catholic’s actually believe and what a pope can and cannot do. I said it nicely… not fiercely or anything… Just in simple defense. That’s how it started.

 

[maryjk]

I’m trying to imagine anything else a doctor could advise that would go against the Catholic faith and I can’t.
What else could come up in this category?

Respecting life.

And not just that life begins at conception. But also conception should be the result of marital relations. (No IVF)

Respecting life until natural death.

Belief in prayer.

The need to contact a priest for anointing of the sick.

Those are just off the top of my head.

 

[AnneElizabeth]

I don’t think that is a wrong way of looking at it. I only think we need to be careful about the assumptions we make about people providing medical care. It pays to ask questions, to make our own needs clear, and to realize that we live in a world of litigation that doesn’t always leave physicians as free to practice as they otherwise would be able to do.

Yeah, that part makes things so awful. Its sad… for both patient and physician. I feel very badly for physicians actually, having to watch their step so to speak.

 

[Kelfa28]

Do you mean with that statement that its rude and too personal for me to ask my new doctor that question, or do you mean it would be too personal and rude for the doctor to ask you your personal religious views? Sorry, just trying to clarify my confusion.

It’s rude and too personal for either of you to be asking that question to each other.

You’d be rude to ask them that question and they’d be rude to ask you the question in return.

All your doctor needs to know is what you feel comfortable with. He is obligated to give his opinion on the matter…but it’s still up to you to disregard it.

One thing I’ve learned is to expect no one to help out with my quest to use NFP. My midwife wants nothing to do with it.
She doesn’t think it will work and is stuck on the thought that NFP is the old fashion rhythm method.

I still use my Midwife because she is outstanding at what she does and I’m far, far more comfortable with her then any OB. She has decades of experience delivering babies and just knows what she is talking about.

I can’t count on anyone who practices medicine to be a practicing Catholic. It’s not worth my time or trouble to jump through hoops to find someone who is.

I could guarantee it would be a ridiculously long drive and my insurance might not cover them.
Plus, I have access to plenty of fantastic doctors a stone’s throw from my house.

Maybe it’s because I’ve worked in the medical field, myself, for years.
I care about the care that my doctor can give me more then their ideology.

They’ve all taken ethics and they all should know that they’ll have patients who will disagree with “standard medical advice” such Catholics (or other Christians who disagree with using abortificants), JWs and Christian Scientists.

It’s their job, as doctors, to make a recommendation and it’s our job, as patients, to either agree or disagree.

I really have a hard time imagining any doctor having a serious problem with someone turning down birth control or having their tubes tied.
Especially if pregnancy is not something that poses a major medical risk for the mom.

Plenty of women, Catholic or not, are just not comfortable filling their body with hormones or terminating their ability to have babies.

 

[AnneElizabeth]

That sounds quite unprofessional on the doctor’s end, that a doctor-patient relationship would be strained only because you became more Catholic.
(Why would that even come up?)

If they were suggesting you, say, use birth control or get an abortion…you would say no, that’s not for you. A professional doctor knows people have differing opinions on these issues, for example–be they religious or not–and the doctor’s job it to advise, but let you make the decisions that are best for you. You don’t even need to explain why.

I’m trying to imagine anything else a doctor could advise that would go against the Catholic faith and I can’t.
What else could come up in this category?

.

Well, its hard to describe what it was without getting into my own personal private information here, which I won’t. I will say that one of the things was that Yoga was suggested strongly to me (and while I’m not sure about how I feel about Yoga, my decision was not to get into it on account of my faith) … plus there were some other new age practices that had me unnerved. I didn’t flat outright say anything to her at that time about it… it just worried me and I went against it, deciding not to even look into it, but later she brought it back up, and so I confessed my concerns. She then kind of tried to pressure me into think it was ok and that Jesus would “dig” it and I shouldn’t be so uptight about these ideas…, very much trying to drive her beliefs on me.

As I said, she had quite a few bad reviews online… AND I HATE going by those because I think its unfair not to give someone the chance to defend themselves, but it seems that maybe she does have some what of a problem. I do believe she means well though. Just maybe uninformed about ethical lines?

Anyway, so that is where I am at… needing a specialist for a specific malady, but its not easy to find one.

 

[AnneElizabeth]

It’s rude and too personal for either of you to be asking that question to each other.

You’d be rude to ask them that question and they’d be rude to ask you the question in return.

All your doctor needs to know is what you feel comfortable with. He is obligated to give his opinion on the matter…but it’s still up to you to disregard it.

One thing I’ve learned is to expect no one to help out with my quest to use NFP. My midwife wants nothing to do with it.
She doesn’t think it will work and is stuck on the thought that NFP is the old fashion rhythm method.

I still use my Midwife because she is outstanding at what she does and I’m far, far more comfortable with her then any OB. She has decades of experience delivering babies and just knows what she is talking about.

I can’t count on anyone who practices medicine to be a practicing Catholic. It’s not worth my time or trouble to jump through hoops to find someone who is.

I could guarantee it would be a ridiculously long drive and my insurance might not cover them.
Plus, I have access to plenty of fantastic doctors a stone’s throw from my house.

Maybe it’s because I’ve worked in the medical field, myself, for years.
I care about the care that my doctor can give me more then their ideology.

They’ve all taken ethics and they all should know that they’ll have patients who will disagree with “standard medical advice” such Catholics (or other Christians who disagree with using abortificants), JWs and Christian Scientists.

It’s their job, as doctors, to make a recommendation and it’s our job, as patients, to either agree or disagree.

I really have a hard time imagining any doctor having a serious problem with someone turning down birth control or having their tubes tied.
Especially if pregnancy is not something that poses a major medical risk for the mom.

Plenty of women, Catholic or not, are just not comfortable filling their body with hormones or terminating their ability to have babies.

Thanks for your (name removed by moderator)ut. I feel the same way with all you said.

I have been asked at doctor offices what my religious affiliation before… They said I didn’t have to answer if I did not want to. Was this bad? That’s why I am a bit confused.

 

[AnneElizabeth]

…

Her comment about Jesus “digging” it is kinda off, tho. So she’s maybe socially awkward, but means well.

.

Yes, I agree. She doesn’t have too many years into practice- so it could be just that. I have no fight to pick with her, only that like the other doctor, relations got too entangled with religion, so its just best I moved on. … But my anxiety about this happening again (it has happened twice now) as I find a new doctor is flared up. Hence the question.

I’d just feel ‘safer’ or more comfortable having a doctor that shares my views- that way, most likely no unexpected ‘bumps’ like this will occur, then again, its still possible.

 

[maryjk]

Surely.
But I can’t imagine a doctor is going to advise a patient not to pray or not to call a priest.
They may surely urge them to keep taking medicine and treatment and not rely on *only * on prayer and anointing to get better–they would be remiss and mal-practising as doctors not to do that.

And many women don’t want to do IVF, religious or not…so…a doctor wouldn’t even connect that to religious reasons if a woman chose not to do that…

I had a doctor that basically told me that I was an idiot for using NFP. He told his nurse that I wouldn’t need to make an appointment for my annual because he was sure I would be pregnant before then. This because I didn’t want birth control.

Then when I checked out, the receptionist said that it was weird because he didn’t write down when he wanted to see me, it should have listed a one year follow up. I told her it was fine, I wasn’t planning on coming back.

It would be nice to think that my beliefs don’t matter when it comes to health care, but sometimes they do. And having a doctor that doesn’t belittle them is priceless.

 

[captainrick]

She said something against the pope which was not a truth, (it was a flat out lie that’s being touted around in some circles). I was trying to give her the correct information coming from the side of what Catholic’s actually believe and what a pope can and cannot do. I said it nicely… not fiercely or anything… Just in simple defense. That’s how it started.

Sounds like you did the right thing! The physician, however, was very inappropriate.