Questions from an OB/GYN

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nate_trigeek

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I am an OB/GYN considering converting to the Catholic Church. Obviously part of my practice involves contraception. I am wondering what impact my conversion will have upon my practice. I have a few specific questions:
  1. Can I ever prescribe an oral contraceptive for contraceptive purposes?
  2. Can I prescribe a contraceptive for non-contraceptive purposes, e.g. treating pain or bleeding disorders?
  3. Are there any good resources for a Catholic OB/GYN?
Look forward to help on these issues. Thanks!
 
nate_trigeek said:
I am an OB/GYN considering converting to the Catholic Church. Obviously part of my practice involves contraception. I am wondering what impact my conversion will have upon my practice. I have a few specific questions:
  1. Can I ever prescribe an oral contraceptive for contraceptive purposes?
  2. Can I prescribe a contraceptive for non-contraceptive purposes, e.g. treating pain or bleeding disorders?
  3. Are there any good resources for a Catholic OB/GYN?
Look forward to help on these issues. Thanks!
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I don’t know about the first question but I know from reading these forums that the answer to number 2 is yes.
 
I have a wonderful resource for you: The Pope Paul VI institute. You can visit their website at www.popepaulvi.com to learn more about how they address women’s health issues from a Catholic perspective.
 
It might affect your practice if you refuse to prescribe contraception for birth control purposes BUT you could also open yourself up to a whole new clientele by offering a NFP-only practice. I know in my area there are no NFP-only OB/GYNs. So you could look at it from that aspect as well.

Blessings to you as you consider joining the Catholic church.
 
=nate_trigeek;5021856]I am an OB/GYN considering converting to the Catholic Church. Obviously part of my practice involves contraception. I am wondering what impact my conversion will have upon my practice. I have a few specific questions:
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  1. Can I ever prescribe an oral contraceptive for contraceptive purposes?
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No one may not do so. If you’d like more information I would suggest that you read

Pope Paul VI, Humanae Vitae & J.P II Evangelium Vitae both of which are available on line or the EWTN Web. site.

The Catechesism of the RCC says:

**1643 “Conjugal love involves a totality, in which all the elements of the person enter - appeal of the body and instinct, power of feeling and affectivity, aspiration of the spirit and of will. It aims at a deeply personal unity, a unity that, beyond union in one flesh, leads to forming one heart and soul; it demands indissolubility and faithfulness in definitive mutual giving; and it is open to fertility. In a word it is a question of the normal characteristics of all natural conjugal love, but with a new significance which not only purifies and strengthens them, but raises them to the extent of making them the expression of specifically Christian values.”
**

**1652 “By its very nature the institution of marriage and married love is ordered to the procreation and education of the offspring and it is in them that it finds its crowning glory.”

“Children are the supreme gift of marriage and contribute greatly to the good of the parents themselves. God himself said: “It is not good that man should be alone,” and “from the beginning [he] made them male and female”; wishing to associate them in a special way in his own creative work, God blessed man and woman with the words: “Be fruitful and multiply.” Hence, true married love and the whole structure of family life which results from it, without diminishment of the other ends of marriage, are directed to disposing the spouses to cooperate valiantly with the love of the Creator and Savior, who through them will increase and enrich his family from day to day.”**
  1. Can I prescribe a contraceptive for non-contraceptive purposes, e.g. treating pain or bleeding disorders?
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Yes (conditionally) so long as the intended purpose (keeping in mind that God is the judge) is medical and health related.

There is a moral issue here of Greater good. The intended good cannot be less than the “actual evil” but this would be a good topic to discusss with a priest, when you have specific facts that you can share.

Example: Convenience alone would not be a just cause, it would have to be to improve an existing medical condition.
  1. Are there any good resources for a Catholic OB/GYN?
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I don’t know but suggest you log on to ***EWTN’s web. and do a word search in their Library ***
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Look forward to help on these issues. Thanks!
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Thanks so much for asking,

Love and prayers,
 
I am only going to give question 3 a shot.
My advice, Talk to COMMITTED Catholic OBGYN’s and see how and what they do. I know that in the medical field peer support and knowledge is valuable. There are several websites that have Catholic OBGYN’s that you could talk to.
 
There are faithful Catholic Docs out there–I go to one here in MN and also went to one in MI. Check out omsoul.com and visit the NFP Directory and see if there are any such docs in your area or within a decent distance from you. Ah, here’s a nice resource for you by Dr. Flemming in MI–The Journey of a Catholic OB/GYN:
avemariaradio.onlinecatholicstore.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=7121

You also might check out the Tepeyac clinic:
tepeyacfamilycenter.com/resources/ethical_topics/our_principles/

I also second the recommendation to check out the Pope Paul VI Institute.

God bless you!
 
nate_trigeek said:
I am an OB/GYN considering converting to the Catholic Church. Obviously part of my practice involves contraception. I am wondering what impact my conversion will have upon my practice. I have a few specific questions:
  1. Can I ever prescribe an oral contraceptive for contraceptive purposes?
  2. Can I prescribe a contraceptive for non-contraceptive purposes, e.g. treating pain or bleeding disorders?
  3. Are there any good resources for a Catholic OB/GYN?
Look forward to help on these issues. Thanks!
Click to expand...
Contraception is against the moral order, and that includes prescribing it. So, no you could not prescribe any form of contraception or sterilization nor participate in such.

You can certainly prescribe *treatment for an illness *even if its secondary effect is sterility (temporary or permanent).

I highly recommend going to www.omsoul.com and looking at the Physician’s Packet. They have testimonies from doctors who went from prescribing contraception to being NFP only. You can also contact the Catholic Medical Association and also looking at NFP Only doctors on www.omsoul.com and becoming affiliated with www.popepaulvi.com and learning Doctor Hilger’s methods would be very, very good.
 
Nanny_PK said:
It might affect your practice if you refuse to prescribe contraception for birth control purposes BUT you could also open yourself up to a whole new clientele by offering a NFP-only practice. I know in my area there are no NFP-only OB/GYNs. So you could look at it from that aspect as well.

Blessings to you as you consider joining the Catholic church.
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👍

Here’s one NFP-only gynecologist with a thriving practice in Atlanta.
 
beckycmarie said:
LOL- guess I should have been more clear that I was giving her as an example for Dr. Nate.
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Thanks for the clarification 😃 As much as I’d like a NFP-only OB/GYN, I’m not willing to buy an airline ticket to Atlanta to see one.
 
I just happened to read this story from a book the other night and the timing must be divine providence:

Author: Phil Lenahan
Book: Seven Steps to Becoming Financially Free (A Catholic Guide to Managing Your Money).

Dr. Arthur Stehly, a Catholic obstetrician and gynecologist who delivered most of our seven children, has been a great example of living out his faith in the workplace. During the 1980s, he had no qualms about prescribing contraceptives to his patients. When he heard Pope John Paul II speak during a visit to Southern California, Dr. Stehly was convinced he needed to bring his medical practices in line with the teaching of the Church.

He went to confession and mentioned his dilemma to the priest, saying that he felt called to phase out his dispensing of contraceptives. The priest - it seems to me with the hand of Providence guiding him - asked Dr. Stehly if he were a bank robber, would he “phase out” his robbing of banks, or would he stop immediately? Dr. Stehly realized he needed to stop dispensing contraceptives without delay.

Returning to his office, he wrote a letter to all of his patients, letting them know of his decision. What was the immediate reward for this act of faithfulness? Two-thirds of his patients left his practice! I’m sure you can imagine the financial impact of removing two-thirds of your revenue base from your business. Yet within two years, he found himself busier than ever. What happened? When pro-life families heard about this doctor - one that appreciated their openness to life rather than one who would try to convince them to practice artificial contraception or be sterilized - they began flocking to him. Before long, his practice was booming. He had the courage it took to trust in God’s providence, and he was rewarded. He has been a great inspiration to us, and an example of integrating faith and work.

I don’t have much more to add other than simply emphasizing that we DESPERATELY need more pro-life doctors, especially intelligent truth-seeking OB/GYNs. This country has been hi-jacked by the lies of abortion and contraception and you have a wonderful opportunity to do something about it. I will pray for you!

-Mike

PS: From your post I couldnt tell if you were fully on board with the catholic teaching on contraception. If not, I would recommend “The Good News about Sex and Marriage” by Christopher West. He does a nice job of boiling down John Paul II’s “Theology of the Body”.
 
i pray your journey into the Church will be gracefilled. My you find your home in the Eucharist.

as others mentioned, contraceptives prescribed for that purpose are opposed to God’s meaning of sexuality.

in addition to the other great links, please contact One More Soul. they can put you in contact with OB/ Gyns who practice in harmony on the Church’s teachings of sexuality. omsoul.com/

be assured, you will have patients!!! there is a prolife OBGYN a few miles from here. he is swamped with patients because women want his type of skill and philosophy and faith.
 
Welcome to the church. The Creighton Model of NFP is an excellent and useful tool to treat all the common problems with co-operative hormone therapy. As this is very successful, the ‘usual’ medical way of treating all the problems are not necessary to use. You can become an NFP- only physician. I am family practice and not OB/gyn and my practice is not exactly like my partners’ but is thriving. I am sure that in the sites listed previously, many ob/gyn docs who either never prescribed, or switched to NFP-only would be more than happy to share their experiences. I don’t think it’s easy to switch, but then nothing worthwhile seems to ever be easy. Your concerns are shared by some urologists I know who have stopped doing vasectomies as well. God’s blessings as you pursue an issue that many Catholic docs struggle with and often fall to societal pressures.
 
Okay, I live in the next state over from the OP - and I already know girls who travel to NC to see an NFP gyno! I’m so sick of the student health center pushing birth control on me (and thinking I’m some insane subhuman for saying no) - if the OP is within two hours of my home (NC is a big place), I’ll make the drive. And I know LOTS of other Catholic girls who would.

OP, ever consider relocating :D? We don’t have any NFP gynos in our state … and I’m sure you’d get tons of clients.
 
Hi Nate. I’m praying for you, too. It’s a difficult age… in which to be working in the field of medicine. I think it was the great Catholic apologist and author, G.K. Chesterton… who said that the problems in the field of medicine… began, when the field became an industry… rather than a vocation.

It sounds like to you, it is still a “vocation”. 👍

If you haven’t already… I would suggest that you research the Catholic Medical Association. Link below. These are doctors and nurses who are dedicated to practicing medicine, in line with Catholic moral teaching. You might also wish to take St. Gianna Molla… as your Patron. She was also a medical doctor. God bless you.

cathmed.org/aboutthecma/ourhistory.htm

wf-f.org/StGianna.html
 
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