Liberation therapy aftercare, body modification, reproductive and other health services: can your healthcare provider refuse to treat you because it bothers his (or her) conscience?

Conscientious objection has largely entered the public consciousness via the polarizing lens of debates on access to abortion services. Yet such debate reflects only the tip of a much larger iceberg of contexts in which healthcare providers conscientiously refuse to provide certain services. For example, what should be done about conscientious refusals of care to patients who engage in health-related activities of which a practitioner does not professionally approve (e.g., smoking, overeating, body modification, accessing unapproved therapies overseas)? These service refusals may well be an expression of conscience on the part of healthcare professionals. However, they also risk denying individual patients access to healthcare services and they may in some cases be argued to be discriminatory. The challenging question before us is how we can create policies that permit genuinely conscience-based refusal opportunities, while also ensuring that patients receive adequate, non-discriminatory access to desired healthcare services. The panelists and moderator are experts in areas of relevance to the subject matter: i.e., bioethics, medicine, dentistry and health law and policy. We invite all members of the public, including health and legal professionals, to come to the Café Scientifique, where they can enjoy free refreshments, ask questions of expert panelists, share their own experiences, and weigh in on a matter of great importance to Canadian patients and providers today.