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Subject: Re: Wearing a dress 'a cure for lesbianism' Author: XOX [ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ] Date Posted: 16:07:32 01/05/05 Wed In reply to: XOX 's message, "Wearing a dress 'a cure for lesbianism'" on 16:05:59 01/05/05 Wed 1 January 2005 SCMP Q Should youth be entitled to unbiased advice on sexuality? The recent "sexual wholeness" seminar ("Wearing a dress 'a cure for lesbianism'," December 30) raises medical ethics issues which should be immediately addressed. It is frightening to read that a psychologist and a psychiatrist hold strong faith-based views on homosexuality. Their discriminatory religious views are clearly wrong and have seriously affected their supposed professional judgment. One wonders how many other health-care professionals are influenced by religious beliefs to the extent that their treatment of patients becomes misguided and unethical. For example, will doctors who are Christians be swayed to refer homosexuals to psychologists or psychiatrists in order to help "cure" them? And how do doctors who are devout Catholics deal with patients who have an unplanned pregnancy or worse, have been raped? Will they willingly provide their patients with all options, including the option of abortion? And will they look down on patients who contract HIV or other sexually transmitted diseases and label them sinners? For the public's sake, I recommend all health-care professionals disclose their religious interests (if any), along with other competing interests like sponsorship from tobacco or pharmaceutical companies. Furthermore, I urge the Hong Kong Medical Council, Hong Kong Medical Association and other health-care organisations to address this issue of keeping religious-based beliefs separate from evidence-based medical practice. What safeguards are in place to ensure that medical professionalism is independent of religious beliefs? People should recognise that human progress and understanding depends on science-based reasoning and critical thinking, and not faith-based, wishful thinking. Will Lai, Tsim Sha Tsui [ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ]