Doctors in the UK who refuse to provide ‘sex change’ operations could be struck off under new General Medical Council (GMC) draft guidance, it has been claimed.

Doctors could also breach the guidance if they are unwilling to prescribe contraception to an unmarried person but willing to prescribe it to a married person, according to Dr Peter Saunders of the Christian Medical Fellowship.

The guidance, ‘Personal beliefs and medical practice’, was issued by the GMC last Thursday and is subject to consultation.

Section 5 of the guidance states that a doctor may choose to opt out of providing a particular procedure because of personal beliefs and values, but an exception has been made in the area of sex change procedures.
Dr Saunders described the guidance as “a clever piece of double-speak”.

He said: “On the one hand it says that ‘doctors should be free to practise medicine in accordance with their beliefs’, but if this involves ‘denying patients access to appropriate medical treatment or services’ then they must ‘be prepared to set aside their personal beliefs’”.

Dr Saunders added: “The problem is that 21st century British medicine now involves practices which many doctors regard as unethical. This latest guidance by the GMC will therefore be seen by many as a further attack on the right to practise independently in accordance with one’s conscience which lies at the heart of being a true health professional.”

Earlier this year two Catholic midwives took the NHS to court, claiming their conscientious objections to abortions had been ignored.

Mary Doogan, 57, and Concepta Wood, 51, who work at Glasgow’s Southern General Hospital, argued that being forced to supervise staff taking part in the procedures violated their human rights.

But NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Health Board said it recognised their right not to participate in abortions directly but believed it was lawful for the women to supervise and support staff nursing women undergoing abortions. The two midwives lost their legal battle but are set to appeal against the decision.

Meanwhile a Christian doctor sacked after emailing a prayer to colleagues lost his claim for unfair dismissal after a tribunal judge ruled that there was no place for religious references at work. 

Dr David Drew, 64, told an employment tribunal that he was made to feel like a “religious maniac” after sending out the prayer by St Ignatius Loyola, founder of the Jesuits, to motivate his department.

But Employment Judge David Kearsley ruled that if complaints were made about Muslim or Hindu doctors who had quoted from holy texts, they too would be asked to refrain from such behaviour. Similarly, if an atheist consultant caused unease by trying to educate his colleagues about “the works of Richard Dawkins or Christopher Hitchens”, he or she would be treated in the same way, the judge said.

Dr Drew, a former clinical director, said the prayer was intended to offer inspiration in his “frail and imperfect efforts” to serve his patients and the department. 

Judge Kearsley concluded that there was “no evidence” that members of the hospital board “were influenced, even subconsciously, by a prejudice against Christians when compared to persons of others faiths or no faith at all”.

The hearing heard that on occasion, Dr Drew used the phrase “I am a Christian, therefore..” whilst at work.

But the judge said: “There is no need for such assertions in professional communication nor was there a need to make religious references if they are considered inappropriate and if they hinder proper communication.”

Dr Drew said last night that the case would have major implications for any workplace. “This means that you cannot be yourself in the workplace, you cannot say ‘I am a Christian’,” he said.