
blogs


A personal response to the BMA vote on abortion
I was saddened to hear that the BMA have voted to recommend the decriminalisation of abortion. Having…

Reflections on the BMA’s vote to ‘decriminalise’ abortion – ten key observations
Last week delegates at the BMA annual representative meeting (ARM) voted to support the decriminalisation…

How should Christians respond to the transgender issue?
You might think that there are few things more self-evident than the fact that human beings are divided…

Where have all the nurses gone? NMC survey reveals an accelerating attrition of nurses and midwives
It seems sadly ironic that a week after Lord Crisp announced plans for a worldwide campaign to promote…

Over 1,000 doctors reject BMA abortion decriminalisation motion – this is why
Over 1,000 doctors and medical students have signed an open letter urging the British Medical Association…

Good news for freedom of conscience in the UK
For some time we have been concerned at CMF about a possible weakening of conscience protection for pharmacists…

Three myths about Christianity and sexuality
A gay war hero from World War II is chemically castrated, leading to his suicide (The Imitation Game).…

Doctors debate the complete decriminalisation of abortion at BMA ARM
Doctors could back the complete decriminalisation of abortion in Britain next week.
On Tuesday 27 June the…

Reforming the WHO: Can the new General Secretary really be an agent for positive change?
Overshadowed by the coverage of the horrific terrorist attack in Manchester last month, the British media…

Biotechnology companies positioning themselves to make millions from eugenic abortions
The Nuffield Council on Bioethics is warning that a new screening test for pregnant women, Non-Invasive…

Getting conscience right and wrong
Can a doctor refuse to participate in something he finds unconscionable? Is this an important liberty…
Debate: To strike or not to strike? (Part 2)
Junior doctor members of the BMA are voting on industrial action over the new contract proposed by the government. Needless to say there is a range of opinion among CMF members on the subject. So we asked two of our members to help us by sharing opposing views. These articles were commissioned for the forthcoming […]
Debate: To strike or not to strike? (Part 1)
Junior doctor members of the BMA are voting on industrial action over the new contract proposed by the government. Needless to say there is a range of opinion among CMF members on the subject. So we asked two of our members to help us by sharing opposing views. These articles were commissioned for the forthcoming […]
New tests for pregnant women are discriminatory, so who is driving them and why?
The NHS is considering introducing a new test for pregnant women that will make it much easier to detect and search out any babies with Down Syndrome (DS) or other chromosomal differences. We have covered in more detail some of the issues that these new tests raise, both here and here. However it seems appropriate […]
Fetal Anomaly Screening in Pregnancy: more thoughts on the new tests
The NHS is considering introducing a new test for pregnant women that will make it much easier to detect and search out any babies with Down Syndrome (DS) or other chromosomal differences. A superficial reading of new screening recommendations suggests that implementing new tests will save lives – and money too. It will give […]
New screening test for Down’s creates more problems than it solves
The UK National Screening Committee (NSC) is recommending a new test for pregnant women that will detect a higher proportion of fetuses with Down Syndrome. The test is non-invasive and makes use of cell free DNA from the fetus (cfDNA) circulating in the mother’s blood. It is far more accurate than present early pregnancy screening […]
The fragile case for new brittle bone treatment
Researchers are planning to use stem cells extracted from aborted fetuses to try to treat unborn babies with brittle bone disease, osteogenesis imperfecta (OI). This new trial will involve injecting stem cells into a baby diagnosed in the womb as having OI. The stem cells will divide and become incorporated into bone tissue, where the […]
Womb transplants: should we be concerned?
This week, the Health Research Authority granted ethical approval for a trial of ten uterine transplants, with a view to allowing women without a womb a chance to conceive and carry their own child. This follows on from three successful pregnancies in Sweden over the last twelve months to women who have had such […]
Anger, confusion, injustice – should Christian doctors strike?
For the first time since 1975, it looks like doctors are lining up to strike. Morale among juniors is lower than ever – over the last five years many of us have seen it dissipate before our eyes. I am sad to see colleagues and friends upset at this and know it will affect […]
In five years time (or less), expect to see the UK permit the creation of GM babies
There has been a flurry of news reports (and here) in favour of a new technology that could edit the genome of human embryos, making changes that would be passed down the generations. More information on the benefits and potential costs of this interesting new technology, crispr/cas9, is here. The news reports have been […]
The campaign to change surrogacy laws suffers a set-back
According to newspaper reports last week, a one year old boy has been left in limbo, as a ward of court, with no legal father or mother, due to outdated surrogacy laws that deny his genetic father the right to be his legal father. As is often the case with news items, there is more […]
Defeat of the Marris Assisted Dying Bill – some reflections on how MPs voted
The Assisted Dying (No 2) Bill of Labour MP Rob Marris was the eleventh attempt in twelve years to legalise assisted suicide through British Parliaments. But its overwhelming defeat yesterday (11 September 2015) by a margin of 212 votes (330 to 118) should settle this matter for a decade. It is striking (and indeed fitting) […]
Maternal mortality: is there a link with abortion legislation or not?
The question of whether restrictive laws on abortion lead to fewer maternal deaths, or more maternal deaths, is hotly debated. Those who are ‘pro-life’ and want to see more restrictive abortion laws say that fewer abortions leads to fewer maternal deaths, with Northern Ireland providing one example close to home: ‘Ireland and Northern Ireland show […]