Have Adventist Hospitals Stopped Performing Abortions on Demand?

[Nic Samojluk]

The fact that some Adventist hospitals have been engaged in the performance of elective abortions for decades has been amply documented by Adventist historians such as George Gainer [1] and ethicists like Dr. Gerald Winslow [2] in the pages of “Spectrum” and “Ministry.” The question is not whether abortions on demand have been practiced by our medical institutions, but rather whether it is true that our Adventist hospitals are no longer offering abortions on demand, which is contrary to church policy. [3]

In his public address back in February 2011, Ted Wilson, the president of the General Conference of Adventists [GC] told a large group of retirees in the city of Redlands, California, that the number of abortions performed in Adventist hospitals is almost Zero now. I did question the accuracy of this assertion in a letter I sent to him on May 2, 2011. I am still waiting for a response from the GC. [4] Here are some additional facts supporting my contention:

State of Maryland Abortion Related Statistics

1. Number of hospitals in Maryland: 71 [5]

2. Number of Maryland Abortion Clinics: 16 [6]

3. In 2008, there were 34 abortion providers in Maryland. [7]

4. In 2008, 34,290 women obtained abortions in Maryland. [8]

5. Seventy percent of all abortions were provided at abortion clinics, 24% at other clinics, 4% at hospitals and 1% at private physicians' offices. [9]

6. About 98% of abortions in the United States are elective, including socio-economic reasons or for birth control. [10]

Statistical Computations

• Abortions performed at abortion clinics: 34,290 times 0.24 = 82,298

• Abortions performed at hospitals: 34,290 times 0.04 = 1372

• Abortions performed at private physician offices: 34,290 times 0.01 = 343

• Number of hospitals providing abortions: 34 minus 16 = 18

• Share of abortions per hospital: 1372 divided by 18 = 76

• Estimated number of therapeutic abortions per hospital: 76 times 0.02 = 1.52

Do the Above Statistics Support Wilson’s Claim?

In my letter to Ted Wilson, the president of the General Conference of Adventists, I made reference to the statistics I secured from the Health Services Cost Review Commission (HSCRC), an independent Maryland State agency, which resulted in the following number of inpatient abortions performed at two Adventist hospitals in Maryland, Washington Adventist Hospital [WAH] and Shady Grove Hospital [sGH]: 73 for the 2008 year, 65 for 2009, and 58 for 2010, or an average of 37 abortions per Adventist hospital per year.

I could not secure the number of outpatient abortions for said hospitals, which in previous years outnumbered the number of impatient abortions by far. Someone suggested that those abortions performed at Adventist hospitals might have been of the therapeutic kind—rape, incest or malformation. Since, according to the major abortion provider, Planned Parenthood, estimate that therapeutic abortions represent only two percent of all abortion cases, and two percent of 37 equals less than one abortion, there is no way of concluding that the abortions done by said Adventist hospitals might belong to the therapeutic category.

This reminds me of the following anecdote. Not long ago I was talking to a retired medical secretary from Loma Linda University who confided with me that some years ago she was working for a LLUMC physician who was doing one abortion after another from morning till evening and labeling all of them as therapeutic. Of course, it did not take long for her to figure out that the majority of those cases were elective abortions which were routinely labeled as of the therapeutic kind. No wonder some years ago a General Conference official described our WAH as an “abortion mill.”

Concluding Remarks

The facts described above tend to support my suggestion that President Ted

Wilson has been misinformed about the number of elective abortions performed in Adventist hospitals. Wilson is determined to lead the Adventist towards Revival and Reformation. How can he do so, if he is kept in the dark about what is really taking place inside our medical institutions?

The statistics I providentially secured for WAH and SGH indicate that the number of elective abortions far exceed “zero” as claimed by Wilson, and do not forget that we have over 50 Adventist hospitals in North America. If ten of them do what these two hospitals have been doing, then the total number of abortions on demand in our Adventist hospitals would be close to 4,000 per year. This practice is in direct violation of our church policy regarding elective abortions!

I believe that if such medical institutions are unwilling to align themselves with the pro-life policy of the church regarding abortions on demand, the church should divorce itself from said medical entities if we want to be free from the guilt associated with the shedding of innocent blood. As the “Remnant” church on earth, we cannot afford to wash our hands and pretend like Pilate that we have done our moral duty.

References:

1. http://www.ministrymagazine.org/archive/1991/August/abortion-history-of-adventist-guidelines ; George Gainer, ““The Wisdom of Solomon”?” Spectrum 19/4 (May 1989): 38-46.

2. http://www.spectrummagazine.org/spectrum/issue/vol_19_no_4_may_1989; http://ministrymagazine.org/archive/1991/August

3. http://www.adventist.org/beliefs/guidelines/main-guide1.html

4. http://letsfocusonlife.com/?p=4831

5. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_hospitals_in_Maryland

6. http://www.abortion.com/abortion_clinics_state.php?country=United%20States&state=Maryland

7. Id.

8. Ibid.

9. http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/sfaa/maryland.html

10. http://www.johnstonsarchive.net/policy/abortion/abreasons.html

[Nic Samojluk]

I’m glad you noticed. My guess is that I picked the wrong time for posting it. Everybody is focused on what has been taking place at La Sierra University and in Orlando, Florida. By the way, my book has been published and I hope to have it available soon for purchase at most regular outlets and for downloading. It deals with the dramatic Adventist departure from the original pro-life position exhibited by our Adventist pioneers.

I don’t know whether you are pro-life, but this is an issue that the church needs to address if we want to continue defending our position as a Remnant movement with a unique message for the world with a strict adherence to all Ten of God’s Rules of behavior. We can’t expect to continue growing if we compromise on one of the Big Ten. Our church is growing by leaps and bounds outside of the U.S. in countries where the Adventist Church is still pro-life.

Here is one example: A close friend of mine wrote a book designed for evangelism. Our church printed a million copies and then another million. The last count shows that thirteen millions copies were printed and distributed. Somebody commented that my friend must be rich by now. This is how he responded: “I haven’t taken a single penny in royalties for writing the book.”

Contrast this with the attitude of a former president of the North American Division and later president of the General Conference who when asked about the reason for our involvement with the abortion issue responded: “If we don’t do this, others will profit from it.” We could also add the case of Dr. Edward Allred who graduated from Loma Linda University back in 1964 and decided to dedicate his life to the lucrative abortion business and became a millionaire in the process eventually owning over 20 California abortion clinics.

How can we tell world with a straight face that we are the Remnant if we continue the practice of looking the other way while some of our Adventist hospitals are still offering abortion services to their patients?

[JawgeFromJawja]

As a Baptist physician (now retired over 4 years), I totally endorse respect for sanctity of life.

Ifs, ands an buts? Unfortunately, the practice of abortion is going to happen whether we protest or not. I do give a very reluctant agreement to "pro-choice". Pro-murder, that is. Sophistry to the contrary, a fetus is a living being, and at least by DNA signature, human. Killing a living human being is murder.

Why agree to pro-choice? Again, abortion is going to happen. Those seeking my advice on abortions are given facts, facts, facts, in as non judgmental a manner as possible. If the decision is for abortion, I provide no other assistance, not even to supplying names of surgeons who perform such atrocity. They will find one to comply with their selfish wish. But it still hurts. Deeply. But as Christians, we do not have to comply in any way, especially to actually let elective abortions be performed in our institutions.

Even for atheists and those who have no reverence for life, my argument is that abortion is economically not justifiable. And there are risks, multiple risks even with the most "competent" abortionists.

I feel dirty even writing about this sorry subject.