Available online
Description
Rosemary has battled with severe health problems for many years. She has Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and, following complications of spinal surgery, she is now a full time wheelchair user and her breath...ing is impaired. She receives her nutrition via a tube fed directly into her blood stream and she empties her bowels into a bag attached to the small intestine.She has always wanted a child and now, aged 36 and in the early stages of a relationship, she asks for assisted conception.The fertility doctor refers Rosemary on to various specialists at the hospital, who enumerate the risks. If Rosemary is to have IVF, she'll need a general anaesthetic which would be extremely risky for her. Furthermore, any pregnancy could be life threatening to Rosemary and a potential fetus, and the team are concerned about the welfare of a future child. Also, if Rosemary becomes pregnant, her child could inherit Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome as the condition is genetic.While hospitals look after women with complex problems who are already pregnant, enabling a woman like Rosemary to become pregnant is an ethical challenge of a different order. But Rosemary herself is adamant she wants to take the risk, whatever the potential consequences.Should the fertility team help Rosemary get pregnant?Joan Bakewell and a panel of guests discuss this ethical issue.
Rosemary has battled with severe health problems for many years. She has Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and, following complications of spinal surgery, she is now a full time wheelchair user and her breath...ing is impaired. She receives her nutrition via a tube fed directly into her blood stream and she empties her bowels into a bag attached to the small intestine.She has always wanted a child and now, aged 36 and in the early stages of a relationship, she asks for assisted conception.The fertility doctor refers Rosemary on to various specialists at the hospital, who enumerate the risks. If Rosemary is to have IVF, she'll need a general anaesthetic which would be extremely risky for her. Furthermore, any pregnancy could be life threatening to Rosemary and a potential fetus, and the team are concerned about the welfare of a future child. Also, if Rosemary becomes pregnant, her child could inherit Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome as the condition is genetic.While hospitals look after women with complex problems who are already pregnant, enabling a woman like Rosemary to become pregnant is an ethical challenge of a different order. But Rosemary herself is adamant she wants to take the risk, whatever the potential consequences.Should the fertility team help Rosemary get pregnant?Joan Bakewell and a panel of guests discuss this ethical issue.
| Series: | Inside the ethics committee; Series 9 |
|---|---|
| Episode | 1 |
| First transmission date: | 2013-08-08 |
| Original broadcast channel: | BBC Radio 4 |
| Published: | 2013 |
| Rights Statement: | Rights owned or controlled by The Open University |
| Restrictions on use: | This material can be used in accordance with The Open University conditions of use. A link to the conditions can be found at the bottom of all OU Digital Archive web pages. |
| Duration: | 00:43:00 |
| Note: | Radio 4 version |
| + Show more... | |
| Producer: | Beth Eastwood |
| Presenter: | Joan Bakewell |
| Contributors: | Joan Bakewell; Deborah Bowman; Alison Murdoch; Kaliya Franklin |
| Publisher: | BBC Open University |
| Production number: | PEI32001351 |
| Available to public: | no |
