Whelton, James A.

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The Linacre QuarterlyVolume 31 | Number 2 Article 18May 1964American Letter to the Foreign JournalsJames A. WheltonFollow this and additional works at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/lnqRecommended CitationWhelton, James A. (1964) "American Letter to the Foreign Journals," The Linacre Quarterly: Vol. 31 : No. 2 , Article 18.Available at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/lnq/vol31/iss2/18American Letter to the Foreign J our 1ah In past years the attainment of a degree in medicine has been o_ne of the major areas in which Cathol1Cs have participated in the intellectual life of the United States. The scope and depth of scholastic ambition among ever-increasing numb�rs of Catholic youth today has expanded to include advanced degrees in literature and in the physical and social sciences with a continued interest manifest in the health professions. There are six Catholic medical schools in the country with an enroll­ment of 2,108 students of whom ap­proximately two-thirds ar_e Catho_lic. Eighty-o ne non-CatholJC medical schools enroll 28,217 students with Catholic students constituting one­fourth. Newman Clubs exist in many of the secular schools but the vitality and influence of these organizations vary considerably. Often there is little uniformity of program and limited communication among them or with the senior Guilds of Catholic physi­cians from which helpful guidance and financial support could reason­ably be expected. It is estimated that there are 30,000 Catholic physicians in the United States today ( 15 % of total) . Seven thousand of these doctors are mem­bers of Physicians' Guilds in more than 100 American cities. As no uniform state laws exist with regard to civil regulation of sterili­zation, therapeutic abortion or con­traceptive practices, medico-moral problems as encountered by the indi­vidual Catholic physician vary accord­ing to the area in which he practices. Many states permit sterilization for eugenic reasons and recently two states have approved laws which per­mit sterilization to be performed at the request of an individual. Similarly 84 there is great disparity betW( :n tht various states in the accepted 1, gal in­dications for therapeutic a rtion. Psychiatric disorders have cor tituteil an ever-increasing indication Jespite reports from Sweden and l glanl which have shown the fallacy :)f thi1 approach. A more positive observatior is th1 infrequency with which tht apeuti abortion is now recommended for tht pregnant cardiac patient. Publi heal� programs have been organ '.ed to carry out the pre-natal care ,f sud patients in their homes and there� decrease the exertion and a · ed ex· posure to possible infection w 1ich tht cardiac patient experiences in attend· ing a pre-natal clinic. The pre nise ol a successful vaccine against ;erman measles will eliminate fore· er thi1 disorder as a supposed indica :on for interruption of pregnancy. Along with many other C< untries, the United States has exper· cnced 1 marked increase in the numb, r of ii· legitimate p regnanc ie s, e-peciallj among teen-aged girls. A vr ·iety ol community programs exist t provi� assistance for these girls e, ther in Maternity Shelters or in the 1,re-nat�department of large city hos1 ,itals. A Catholic physician in the city of Attie boro not far from Boston ha. evolv� a unique approach to this 1,robie!TL .His program represents an effort ()II the part of a group of dedicated mar· ried couples, social workers, docto� and priests to create a Foster Famrlf Home Care Program for un�� mothers. These foster couples stnrt to help the young girls by acceptinJ them into their homes as a meml:,c! of their families with the correspond· ing duties and privileges. The obstt trician who participates in this P� LINACRE QUARTERLY gram offers to the un�ed mother the medical and psychological advanta�es of personal-physician-typ: ca!e w�i�h is so difficult to obtain m clinic practice. All of the assistance, except the hospital care, is voluntary and un­paid. To _date 43 unwed m�thers h�ve availed themselves of this service. Four of these left the program for other types of care. All of the girls have placed their babies for adoption through_ licensed agencies. James A. Whelton, M.D.* Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Boston City Hospital 818 Harrison Ave. Boston 18, Mass., U.S.A. February 1964 *Instructor in Obstetrics and Gynecology, Tufts University School or Medici,:ie; Assist­ant Director, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Boston City Hospital; mem­ber, Guild of St. Luke of Boston. The annual Memorial Mass for dece·ased members of the A.M.A. and the National Federation of Catholic Physicians' Guilds will be offered at St. Mary's Church, 660 California Avenue, San Fran­cisco, at 8 :00 a.m. on June 24. The Most Reverend Joseph T. Mc­Gucken, S.T.D., 11.D., Archbishop of San Francisco, will be the celebrant. A breakfast will follow at the Sir Francis Drake Hotel, preceding the Federation annual Executive Board meeting. Reser­vations are required. Wives and friends attending the. Mass arewelcome. Breakfast tickets $3.00 each. Remit to the Nat10nal Fed­eration office, 1438 So. Grand Blvd., St. Louis, Missouri 63104, when ordering. MAv, 1964 85 

American Letter to the Foreign Journals

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American Letter to the Foreign Journals

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