by Burger Time 15 Replies latest watchtower medical
I suppose that could be arranged between the patient and his/her doctor, however if any JW employee of the hospital had access to the person's medical files they would be sure to read it and report said JW patient to the elders.
I know of a case where that exact thing happened to JW in my congregation a few years before I left.
That is so grounds for suing that doctor's, and person's butt off in the US.
The simple answer to your question is "Yes" (if you live in Bulgaria).
My understanding is that nowadays (thanks to Bulgaria) its no longer a DF offense. A JW who freely receives a blood transfusion is considered to have DA'd himself by his accepting it. Makes it nice and simple, no need for a JC, they put all the blame on the individual.
The trick then, is to take advantage of the privacy laws that exist regarding patients and their health care. Of course these laws vary from one country to another, and JWs working in medical institutions have been known to violate HIPAA rules.
And of course you need to be prepared to lie to any elder that gets too nosy. Remember that its none of their business anyway, don't let feelings of guilt trip you up or cause you to lose any sleep over it.
No Apologies
In my Doctors surgery there was a woman who worked there who was a witness. She was adament that she would spill the beans on anyone who "did wrong"
Years later I met her after we had both left the Borg and she told me that there were so many child protection issues with the elders families that she became aware of that the elders told her to get another job.
She became very ill because of the stress and was basiclly told she was not fit to be in the congregation and she left.
If someone had a transfusion in this country then they could demand that the fact be kept quiet but if you had lots of visitors and a bag of blood hanging up by the bed someone would notice...
Tricky one as you might need to live and stay in the cong untill you could get out. Also I don't think you could be disfellowshipped as they would say that you had DA'ed yourself. (nice avoidence of responsibility by them I feel)
In essence, even though it is a DA and not a DF, the way it's supposed to work is like this:
If a JW is known to have accepted a transfusion, 2 elders are assigned to meet with him afterward. "In theory", if he does a really good job of groveling, they might determine that he accepted the transfusion under extreme duress and that he has repented and thus would not be considered DA.
I suspect this would be pretty rare anyway, and if the elders are real hard-***es, they wouldn't even give him that chance.
Your medical records and treatment are CONFIDENTIAL. Your Dr will respect your wishes and keep any treatments confidential. If there is anyone working around your records, here in Canada anyways, there are very strict Privacy Laws in effect. You have to sign a contract stating you will keep any and all information confidential. Scully could tell you more about this.
Technically I don't think you are DF'd anymore for receiveing a blood transfusion. You have DA'd yourself by your actions. You could tell them you were so drugged up you didn't know what you were doing.
And AB is right, they'll get ya for the drinking long before the transfusion!! lol
BB
