Content producer Leonor Macedo, 41 years old, was surprised when, during a consultation with a gynecologist in which she was evaluating the possibility of inserting an intrauterine device (IUD), as a contraceptive method, on Monday morning (22) at the Hospital São Camilo, was informed that due to religious guidelines the procedure could not be carried out at the institution.
Macedo went home and exposed the case on X (formerly Twitter) in a report that by the time this report was published had already reached hundreds of thousands of people.
Do you think it's easy to be a woman? Yesterday I went to an appointment at Hospital São Camilo and the doctor informed me that she cannot insert IUDs in women because it goes against the religious values of the institution. 🫠🫠🫠
— Leonor Macedo (@subversiva) January 23, 2024
A CNN , the journalist reported shock and restriction on freedom of choice with her own body. “I felt restricted from my legal right to take care of my body. I felt like nothing was good. If you are looking for a method to not get pregnant, you are wrong. If you abort, you are wrong. In our country, you only have one option: fertilize”, she says.
In a note to CNN , the hospital informed that “as it is a Catholic confessional institution, its guidelines are not to perform contraceptive procedures, on men or women. Such procedures are only carried out in cases that involve risks to the maintenance of life.”
A CNN We also contacted the Ministry of Health to find out about the legality of the hospital's decision, but we have not yet received any feedback.
“I was shocked when she told me”
Leonor also said that she was in shock when she was informed by the doctor about the reasons for not being able to carry out the procedure at the hospital. According to the producer, the hospital prescribes contraceptives, but does not perform the IUD placement procedure.
“I was talking to a doctor about the possibility of inserting an IUD. That was when she told me “this procedure is not done here for religious reasons”. I can prescribe birth control pills, but I can’t insert an IUD,” she describes.
The woman says that what she describes as “absurd” reached such proportions that the hospital sought her out and confirmed the doctor’s position.
“The clinical staff manager, super respectful, explained that it is not an issue with the female body. She explained that the hospital is a Catholic institution that follows Vatican institutions and that the guidance is for IUDs and the vasectomy procedure,” she says.
Leonor also reported that the hospital only places IUDs in severe cases of endometriosis, never as a contraceptive method. She also says that she has high blood pressure and that inserting the device would be a safer form of contraception.
“I am going to do. It’s my right”
Even after the shock, Leonor reports that she did not give up on the procedure. She says that she received support from feminist networks and that she will look for another doctor and another hospital that will perform the procedure. “I'm going to have to find another hospital in my plan because they (São Camillus) simply follow the Vatican's guidelines, instead of following science”, she concludes.
Source: CNN Brasil
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