The right of medical staff to conscientious objection has been affirmed by the Supreme Court of Norway in an important ruling. The Court found that Dr. Katarzyna Jachimowicz acted within her rights when refusing to follow through with a medical procedure to which she had a moral objection. The Court held that health clinics and hospitals could not fire staff who asserted such objections.
In 2015, Dr. Jachimowicz lost her employment with a General Practitioner Clinic. She had refused to insert intrauterine devices (IUDs), which can act as abortifacients. Administering a procedure that could result in abortion contradicted her Christian faith.
International law protects the right of medical staff to conscientious objection. Nevertheless, her superiors fired her. A lower court found that she had acted within her right to practise medicine in accordance with her conscience but healthcare authorities appealed the decision. The case was then heard at the Supreme Court of Norway which ruled in favour of Dr Jachimowicz and in favour of conscience rights.
