My daughter wants to be a doctor

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I have a problem I need some advice on.

My oldest girl wants to be a doctor when she grows up. I want to encourage her but at the same time I have to be honest about what kind of training she would go through and what procedures she could be forced to perform. We all know about the issue right now about the pro-death community wanting to force doctors to perform abortions.

I am a parent that is very honest with my children I show them first hand the truth behind everything I can. I don’t believe in things being to grafic for them except maby for the youngest few but as soon as school starts I show them everything.

so when she came to me I was delighted and so we started studying all the things she would learn including medical texts then I found out about what she may be forced to do and I tried to explain this to her. She still wants to be a doctor but adamently refuses to kill babies.

I don’t know whether to incourage her or help her find a alternative career choice. Should I just continue to watch the situation?
 
There’s nothing wrong with wanting to pursue a career where she could help save people’s lives. :o Maybe God is calling her toward this for a reason. 😉
There are many different specialties that doctors can pursue… not all would be involved in having to make that choice!.. Consider specialties like Orthopedics, Pediatrics, Neurologists… not all doctors are in that morally difficult position.
We must always remember to pray for doctors that are put in a difficult position - most don’t pursue their careers with the intention of dealing in politics… very sad for them.
 
s4angel said:
I have a problem I need some advice on.

My oldest girl wants to be a doctor when she grows up. I want to encourage her but at the same time I have to be honest about what kind of training she would go through and what procedures she could be forced to perform. We all know about the issue right now about the pro-death community wanting to force doctors to perform abortions.

I am a parent that is very honest with my children I show them first hand the truth behind everything I can. I don’t believe in things being to grafic for them except maby for the youngest few but as soon as school starts I show them everything.

so when she came to me I was delighted and so we started studying all the things she would learn including medical texts then I found out about what she may be forced to do and I tried to explain this to her. She still wants to be a doctor but adamently refuses to kill babies.

I don’t know whether to incourage her or help her find a alternative career choice. Should I just continue to watch the situation?
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There are a LOT of Doctors… all kinds and 99.9% of them do not perform abortions and probably never will. Don’t scare her out of a great profession if she has the ability.

If she would rather help kids she could go into Peds or Child Psych.

Joe
 
“s4angel” I can understand your concern. In this day and age… I really “feel” for people in the medical professions. But as another poster suggested… it could be that perhaps Our Good Lord is calling your daughter to serve Him in the vocation of doctor.

I would suggest acquainting her EARLY with the life of St. Gianna Molla. St. Gianna (as you may, or may not know) was a wife, mother AND medical doctor. She died, from complications of a difficult pregnancy… in which she adamantly refused to abort her child (at her doctors suggestion). She was canonized by Pope John Paul II… for her heroic virtue in protecting the life of her innocent, unborn daughter (who, btw… is now a doctor herself! 🙂 ).

Here is a link to start interesting your daughter in St. Gianna. And I would suggest that you find all the books and reading materials on the life of St. Gianna, that you can find. I’m sure with the patronage and intercession of St. Gianna Molla… your daughter will discern whether the medical profession is truly her calling. May God bless her and guide her in this decision.

saintgianna.org/
 
I’m sorry I’m not seeing the problem here. There are hundreds of kinds of doctors, some don’t even come close to doing abortions. Some are heart specialists, ear, nose & throat doctors, general medicine doctors, surgeons, the list goes on.

Tell her to go for it! The road to becoming a doctor is hard, but it can be a Godly career! She can SAVE lives instead of put and end to them!
 
Rascalking said:
I’m sorry I’m not seeing the problem here. There are hundreds of kinds of doctors, some don’t even come close to doing abortions. Some are heart specialists, ear, nose & throat doctors, general medicine doctors, surgeons, the list goes on.

Tell her to go for it! The road to becoming a doctor is hard, but it can be a Godly career! She can SAVE lives instead of put and end to them!
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“Ras” from what I’ve heard, sometimes med students are called upon… to take part in “training” which may be morally objectionable to them. Up till now, I believe they can refuse certain aspects of this “training” (i.e., participation in abortion procedures, etc.). But that may not always be the case.

Perhaps that is what the OP is worried about? Just a thought.
 
For heavens sake, encourage her!

There are downsides and ethical dilemas to be found in all professions. But think of all the good she could do. And besides, its her passion, it’s what she wants, it sure beats poledancing. Becoming a doctor is a huge challenge and a lifelong learning experience, not having your support will make it that much more challenging.

Besides, part of the problem with our health care system today is there just plain aren’t enough doctors. Making sometimes ethically challenging life-or-death decisions is just part of the job for any doctor, not just those who are against abortion.
 
Firstly, just like the vegetarians in biology class not wanting to dissect a frog, your daughter does not have to perform that atrocity. A lot more need right now for family doctors, and they rarely ever do anything specialized. She could specialize in ENT, neuro that have nothing to do with the woman’s area. The truth is, if she cares for life and really truly wants to save lives, and is not doing it for status reasons, then I say let her. Few doctors out there anymore because they care for life, there seems to be some underlying reason they are doctors, but not because they want to or like seeing patients. In beginning the medical program, that is something to discuss with the program counselor on whether or not it is necessary.
 
Another thing she can do is research for a very conservative medical program with a very conservative Catholic University. The tricks may be that in doing rotations, she may have to witness or partake, but you never know. I don’t know if there are any doctors in here, but there was a situation with a woman I know that had a tubal conception, and the embryo was permanently lodged in the tubes, and there was no other option given to her but to lose the baby and surgically remove the one side of her repro system. Even if she became a family doctor, she may have to deal with these issues.
 
I know it is a slippery slope, but if she really wants to be a doctor, and you have taught her well, she will find a way to respect you, respect God, and respect herself in all of this. One of the things that doctors pride themselves on is the fact that they are known and specialized in specific areas, and that will be what she is known for.
 
MarieVeronica,

Yes that is my point exactly. She does want to be a pediatrician, she is quite young 11 years old but she has always expressed an interest in it and she has the brains to succeed I have been allowing her to take excellerated courses at her school at which she has done quite well and if she continues she will graduate with a full scholarship. I know that she is quite young and very well may change her mind but I think that we as parents have a vested interest in making sure our children have All the information available to them and every opportunity (ie. Excellerated courses) to make thier dreams come true.

There is a movement on to train all physicians to do abortions and as a pediatrician and treating patients up to the age of 18 she very well may be forced to choose between her beliefs and her career. I wish that the Catholic Church would make a college and enforce thier beliefs ie the sanctity of life and not allow any deviation from that belief but I guess they do have that and still we face the fact that those in the secular sphere could and indeed want our hospitals and medical clinics to perform that which is anthema to us. As a parent I just worry.
 
Encourage her to seek whatever God wants of her, which may very well be to practice as a doctor in the medical field, especially since she has that inclination. Support her, lead by example, showing her that sometimes we have to speak up and do things differently if the standards are immoral. We need good Catholic doctors, good Catholic medical students, etc etc. It would be awesome if your daughter grew up to be a pro-life, Catholic doctor.
 
There’s also support for pro-life doctors out there, like One More Soul, and that support will only grow as opposition to being pro-life grows. I’d say “Go for it!”, and keep her (and all doctors, especially those of the Catholic faith) in your prayers.
 
s4angel said:
I have a problem I need some advice on.

My oldest girl wants to be a doctor when she grows up. I want to encourage her but at the same time I have to be honest about what kind of training she would go through and what procedures she could be forced to perform. We all know about the issue right now about the pro-death community wanting to force doctors to perform abortions.

I am a parent that is very honest with my children I show them first hand the truth behind everything I can. I don’t believe in things being to grafic for them except maby for the youngest few but as soon as school starts I show them everything.

so when she came to me I was delighted and so we started studying all the things she would learn including medical texts then I found out about what she may be forced to do and I tried to explain this to her. She still wants to be a doctor but adamently refuses to kill babies.

I don’t know whether to encourage her or help her find a alternative career choice. Should I just continue to watch the situation?
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Please encourage her, especially if she truly has a calling to care for people. There are not enough people wanting to become doctors today, especially within certain specialties. My father is an internist. He has seen that people are discouraged from being doctors because of the work it involves and the dedication and sacrifice it takes to be not just a doctor, but an excellent doctor. If not that, then many times they are discouraged by fear of malpractice lawsuits or the fear of never being able to pay off student loans or to afford malpractice insurance especially with certain specialties.

There is a great need for good internists - those doctors who practice general medicine and are supposed to get to know their patients sometimes better than any other specialty doctor. They help do preventative medicine and help make the diagnosis and send their patients to specialists for extra treatment.

Your daughter is right. She should not be made to kill babies. My father works for a Catholic health system and none of that is permitted in that system, but at the same time in his field of medicine, he would not even be in contact or come up with that kind of scenario in the first place. In his 30+ years of practice he has never had to deal with anything like that. Early on in his career as a resident, he delivered many babies, but never the opposite.

You will have to have the confidence that you are raising your daughter with a great love for God and His teachings and that she will not go against them in such heavy situations.

One of the greatest things my father enjoys as a doctor is being able to discuss faith and prayer with his patients whether Catholic or not. He helps them not only physically, but also mentally and spiritually. That is not always the case with doctors and as many people have attested about him, he is a true spiritual gem in his field. They love him for his humorous, warm and loving personality, his humble intellect, dedication and also for his spirituality and compassion. He had mentors to lead him in that direction. One in particular, who recently passed away, was a man of strong faith and spirituality. This doctor would be in the hospital chapel before going into surgery, etc. My father, as a young doctor, would go to him for advice on certain cases, but also saw him as a man of true faith and dedication as a doctor. Going into medicine also strengthened his belief in God, as he was little lukewarm for a few years in his 20s. Life and death and the miracle of science helped him see such a broader picture of spirituality, faith and God. Being affiliated with a Catholic hospital was also a help, although sometimes the administration may not be as Christian as it should be.

These are wonderful and important things to consider and talk about with your daughter. The medical world needs spiritual health professionals and these older, spiritual health professionals (like my Dad) need to be able to pass the baton to the next generation. So, please encourage her. Nothing in life is easy, but she will be able to get through it with your support and help.
 
As a female physician who has gone through the whole med school/residency thing, I strongly encourage you to encourage your daughter if she feels called to this profession. We cannot bemoan the lack of faithful, pro-life people in the medical community if we are not willing to **be **those faithful, pro-life people (or encourage our friends or family to be those people).

She will not be forced to do abortions-- no way. Every medical school prohibits this. Even among OB/GYN programs, there are pro-life physicians who will not perform abortions. Similarly with artificial birth control-- she will not be forced to prescribe it nor recommend its use (though she may be required to refer the patient to another physician). She will probably not raise eyebrows over her stance on abortion, but she certainly will if and when she refuses to prescribe birth control pills or patches. The most powerful witnesses we have, though, are those willing to stand up for their beliefs. Again, she will not be forced to prescribe these drugs, but she will find herself having to explain herself and maybe encounter condescension from her colleagues (I speak from experience!), so make sure she is well-grounded in her faith and ready to give a defense of it.
 
s4angel said:
There is a movement on to train all physicians to do abortions and as a pediatrician and treating patients up to the age of 18 she very well may be forced to choose between her beliefs and her career.QUOTE]

What movement is this? Please elaborate.

It seems to me that you are projecting very far into the future. I cannot imagine why you would discourage a young child from pursuing her dreams of becoming a doctor. Those dreams may change or modify in the years to come. In the meantime, the self-discipline and academic rigors she will be exposing herself to can only strengthen her intellect and serve her well in the future, no matter what career path she eventually does choose.
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smallcat said:
As a female physician who has gone through the whole med school/residency thing, I strongly encourage you to encourage your daughter if she feels called to this profession. We cannot bemoan the lack of faithful, pro-life people in the medical community if we are not willing to **be **those faithful, pro-life people (or encourage our friends or family to be those people).

She will not be forced to do abortions-- no way. Every medical school prohibits this. Even among OB/GYN programs, there are pro-life physicians who will not perform abortions. Similarly with artificial birth control-- she will not be forced to prescribe it nor recommend its use (though she may be required to refer the patient to another physician). She will probably not raise eyebrows over her stance on abortion, but she certainly will if and when she refuses to prescribe birth control pills or patches. The most powerful witnesses we have, though, are those willing to stand up for their beliefs. Again, she will not be forced to prescribe these drugs, but she will find herself having to explain herself and maybe encounter condescension from her colleagues (I speak from experience!), so make sure she is well-grounded in her faith and ready to give a defense of it.
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Please, please listen to this. We really do need more spiritual, pro-life doctors!!! Who will take on the baton once my father and smallcat leaves? Your daughter and other faith-filled people called to become a physician.
 
smallcat said:
As a female physician who has gone through the whole med school/residency thing, I strongly encourage you to encourage your daughter if she feels called to this profession. We cannot bemoan the lack of faithful, pro-life people in the medical community if we are not willing to **be **those faithful, pro-life people (or encourage our friends or family to be those people).

She will not be forced to do abortions-- no way. Every medical school prohibits this. Even among OB/GYN programs, there are pro-life physicians who will not perform abortions. Similarly with artificial birth control-- she will not be forced to prescribe it nor recommend its use (though she may be required to refer the patient to another physician). She will probably not raise eyebrows over her stance on abortion, but she certainly will if and when she refuses to prescribe birth control pills or patches. The most powerful witnesses we have, though, are those willing to stand up for their beliefs. Again, she will not be forced to prescribe these drugs, but she will find herself having to explain herself and maybe encounter condescension from her colleagues (I speak from experience!), so make sure she is well-grounded in her faith and ready to give a defense of it.
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👍👍 And you can definitely help her in preparing to deal with having to be strong in her faith and holding on to her beliefs. I do know of other doctors who refuse to prescribe ABC. I have even read articles critical of them for doing so. In the medical field we need more people like them, strong with their convictions, not willing to waiver. Helping her have a solid background, strong faith, is the perfect way to deal with those fears you have.
 
thank you all for all your wonderful advice. I am going to encourage her I just pray that I am up to the task of teaching her how to be as strong as she will need to be. I guess I just need to have faith in God that it will all work out. I just worry about my kids a bit to much at times.:o
 
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