Policing Pregnancy : The Law and Ethics of Obstetric Conflict

Are pregnant women entitled to the same rights of self-determination and bodily integrity as other adults? This is the fundamental question underlying recent high-profile legal interventions in situations when pregnant women and healthcare staff do not agree on management options or appropriate behaviour. Courts on both sides of the Atlantic have sometimes answered that they are not, and the law has at times been manipulated to enforce compliance with medical recommendations. This is the first book of its kind to offer a comprehensive assessment of healthcare law as applied to the unique situation of pregnancy. Drawing on case material from both the UK and the USA, it describes the trend towards 'policing pregnancy' and explores the emergence of the concept of 'maternal-foetal conflict' - and why, in the author's view, this would be more appropriately labelled 'obstetric conflict'. Suggestions are made for alternative approaches that better safeguard the overall well-being of pregnant women and their future children. Meredith analyzes healthcare law as it has been applied to the unique situation of pregnancy in the U.S. and Great Britain. Specifically, she examines recent legal cases resulting from conflicts between pregnant women and their medical advisers regarding appropriate intervention or behavior during pregnancy. She also outlines some competing ethical viewpoints about fetal rights and maternal duty and identifies emerging issues in this area. Meredith was recently awarded an M.Phil. in Law and Medical Ethics at the U. of Glasgow. Annotation © 2006 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR "This is the first book of its kind to offer a comprehensive assessment of healthcare law as applied to the unique situation of pregnancy. Drawing on case material from both the UK and the USA, it describes the trend towards 'policing pregnancy' and explores the emergence of the concept of 'maternal-foetal conflict' and why, in the author's view, this would be more appropriately labelled 'obstetric conflict'. Suggestions are made for alternative approaches that better safeguard the overall well-being of pregnant women and their future children."--BOOK JACKET Cover Half Title Dedication Title Copyright Contents Preface Cases cited Acknowledgements Introduction 1 Pregnant Women and the Law 2 Power Imbalance in Court 3 Is the Law Being Used to Enforce Compliance with Medical Advice? 4 Undermining Capacity to Consent - Another Route to Compliance 5 Questioning Child Welfare - Protection or Punishment? 6 Ongoing Challenges to Autonomy Conclusions Bibliography Index Are pregnant women entitled to the same rights of self-determination and bodily integrity as other adults? Drawing on case material from both the UK and the USA, this is the first book of its kind to offer a comprehensive assessment of healthcare law as applied to the unique situation of pregnancy. Pregnant women and the law Power imbalance in court Is the law being used to enforce compliance with medical advice? Undermining capacity to consent : another route to compliance Questioning child welfare : protection or punishment? Other threats : continuing challenges to autonomy. Court cases in which medical staff seek to impose treatment on unwilling pregnant women represent a unique legal situation.