=
Sextuplets are born into a religious debate=
The premature babies may need blood
transfusions to survive. But their parents' faith prohibits such treatmen=
ts.
By Maggie Farley,
Times Staff Writer
January 17, 2007
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OTTAWA — Canada's first sextuplets, born more than a w=
eek
ago, are facing an additional complication to the usual premature baby's
struggle for survival: Their parents' religion forbids blood transfusions=
, a
typical part of a preemie's treatment.
The babies' condition remains a mystery, and the hospital refuses to conf=
irm
reports that one infant has died.
The six babies were born Jan. 5 and 6 in Vancouver, British Columbia, to
parents who are Jehovah's Witnesses. Delivered at 25 weeks, more than hal=
fway
through the typical 40-week pregnancy, the four boys and two girls averag=
ed
1.6 pounds and can rest in the palm of an average man's hand. The survival
rate for such births is about 80%.
The parents have asked to remain anonymous, and the hospital has not prov=
ided
information since shortly after the births, when a spokesman reported that
the babies were in fair condition.
On Tuesday, hospital officials would not comment on a media report citing
sources in the hospital that one of the boys had died.
"The family asks that their privacy be respected," said a
spokeswoman for B.C. Women's Hospital in Vancouver. "They haven't
provided instructions for releasing a statement."
The news of Canada's first sextuplets and the role of the parents' religi=
on
in their children's chances for survival have riveted a nation that prides
itself on tolerance.
The infants face months in intensive care as their nascent organs, muscles
and immunities develop enough for them to live on their own. Blood
transfusions are a typical part of a preemie's treatment, experts say,
because of their low blood volume and vulnerability to anemia. They also =
must
have their blood drawn repeatedly for tests.
Although Jehovah's Witnesses can receive almost any medical intervention,
including fertility treatments, organ transplants and vaccinations, the
religion's interpretation of the Bible prohibits blood transfusions.
A passage in the Bible cited as the basis for the prohibition is from
Leviticus: "And you must not eat any blood in any places where you d=
well,
whether that of fowl or that of beast. Any soul who eats any blood, that =
soul
must be cut off from his people."
The prohibition probably was meant to prevent the contamination of water
supplies, wrote religious scholar Michael Duggan of St. Mary's University
College in Calgary, Alberta. But the religion, which uses 1st century
Christianity as its model, has interpreted it literally to forbid the
"consumption" or spilling of blood.
Mark Ruge, spokesman for the Jehovah's Witnesses in Canada, said, "I=
t mentions
in the Bible to abstain from blood, and so we follow that. We want the be=
st
for the children, but without blood."
Asked about the consequences of accepting a transfusion, Ruge said that t=
hose
who did not follow the Bible's teachings would no longer be Jehovah's
Witnesses "by their own accord."
Canada's child protection laws ensure that babies get the medical treatme=
nt
necessary to keep them alive, even if it takes a court order.
A 1995 decision by Canada's Supreme Court in a similar case of a premature
baby born to a Jehovah's Witnesses couple concluded that the infant's med=
ical
interests trumped the parents' religious rights.
Neither Vancouver's Child Welfare Department nor the hospital have applied
for a court order, a provincial court official said.
Even if they don't have a choice, the parents face a conundrum. If they
accept blood transfusions to save the babies' lives, it could cut them off
from their religious community at a time when they needed its support.
When Lawrence Hughes, 56, was a Jehovah's Witness, he faced a similar
problem. In 2002, his 16-year-old daughter, Bethany, needed blood
transfusions as part of her treatment for leukemia. His wife, daughter and
the Jehovah's Witnesses community in Calgary opposed the transfusions. Af=
ter
much struggle, he signed the consent forms, and was cut off from his fami=
ly
and congregation.
Jehovah's Witnesses typically live and pray together and discourage
association with people outside the congregation.
"I was completely isolated," Hughes said.
After Bethany had 38 transfusions, her mother took her into hiding, and t=
he
girl eventually died. Hughes is suing the Jehovah's Witnesses, claiming t=
he
lawyers who fought the forced treatments did not act in his daughter's be=
st
interests.
"I knew that once I signed the consent form, that was it. I knew I'd
lose my family, my friends and my faith," he said. "I did it to=
try
to save my daughter, but I lost her too."
Hughes, who works at an architectural firm in Calgary, has joined with ot=
her
former Jehovah's Witnesses and dissenters in the church to seek a change =
in
policy regarding blood transfusions. In recent years, the religion has
allowed patients to receive what it calls "fractions," or
components of blood, but not whole blood.
The prohibition presents a problem for doctors as well, said Juliet Guich=
on,
a medical bioethicist at the University of Calgary.
"The consequences of refusing blood in certain situations are
fatal," Guichon said in a telephone interview. "There must be
something to make people choose that. If it's coercion or fear, the physi=
cian
must be aware of that."
maggie.farley@latimes.com
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