Demonstrations at Catholic Diocese of Phoenix, Az.

December 17 and December 21, 2010

Phoenix/Scottsdale chapter members joined Code Pink activists at the Catholic Phoenix Diocese to peacefully demonstrate against Bishop Olmstead’s unreasonable, unlawful, and life-threatening demands on St. Joseph’s Hospital.  The issue: a women’s right to choose!

In 2009, St. Joseph’s hospital terminated the pregnancy of a 27-year-old mother of four to save the mother’s life.  The woman was suffering from pulmonary hypertension, a condition that limits the ability of the heart and lungs to function.  This medical condition is made worse, possibly fatal, by pregnancy.  The mother had been rushed to St. Joseph’s emergency and her condition was described as moribund. The hospital staff saved the only life they could.

Bishop Olmstead’s response to this legal, life-saving abortion was swift and callous. The Bishop excommunicated Sister Margaret McBride, a senior administrator at St. Joseph’s Hospital who, following consultation with the mother’s family, her doctors and the local ethics committee, authorized the abortion. 

Bishop Olmstead’s reprimands and castigations of St. Joseph’s Hospital and Catholic Healthcare West, the group that runs St. Joseph’s Hospital, continued during the ensuing months.   In December 2010, Bishop Olmstead threatened to remove his endorsement of the hospital as a Catholic Hospital unless CHW acknowledge that the medical procedure was a violation of the policy that governs all Catholic hospitals and “will never occur again at St. Joseph’s Hospital.”

On 21, 2010 the Catholic Diocese of Phoenix removed St. Joseph’s Hospital status as a Catholic Hospital.  The Decree from the Diocese of Phoenix can be read here.

In a media statement, St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center responded to the actions of the Diocese.  Linda Hunt, President of St. Joseph’s Hospital stated: “St. Joseph’s hospital will remain faithful to our mission of care, as we have for the last 15 years. Our caregivers deliver extraordinary medical care and share an unmatched commitment to the wellbeing of the communities they serve. Nothing has or will change in that regard.”  The full statement from St. Joseph’s Hospital can be read here.

Media coverage was extensive on both days, December 17th and December 21st, due to the severity of the issue. Our Cindy Guerra, P/S NOW Action Chairperson, made the evening news on Channel 5 with her sensitive response to this sad affair: "This Christmas season, four children will have their Mother’s warm smile instead of grieving her death, thanks to Sister Mary McBride and the doctors at St. Joseph Hospital that saved her life.  A husband will have his partner to share the Holiday season with his children instead of mourning her death."

Posted: December 31, 2010