Dr. Miriam Grossman #fundie

Dr. Miriam Grossman #fundie miriamgrossmanmd.com

[The topic is a sexual health program in some New York high schools that lets the school nurse provide emergency contraception.]

1. Sexual activity, pregnancy, and contraception are serious health matters. Parents, not schools, are responsible for decisions related to the welfare of their minor child. Schools undermine parental authority when they are complicit with a student's wishes to hide important health issues from her parents.

2. It cannot be assumed that EC [emergency contraception] decreases teen pregnancy. In fact, some studies indicate it may increase it, along with STDs, by increasing sexual activity.
It's not difficult to imagine how that could happen:

She: No, I don't want to... I could get pregnant.

He: No you won't. We have school tomorrow, and you can get one of this pills after history class.

3. The success of the program is measured by how many students use it. But the more sex students have, the more girls will need EC. This just isn't sound thinking.

4. It is highly likely that many parents never hear about the program. The girl who is most likely to need EC is also the girl who is most likely to not deliver the letter. [Parents can opt their students out of this program by sending a letter to the school.]

5. A common side effect of EC is headache. But girls who return to the nurse for Tylenol can't get it without parental consent!

24 comments

old comment by anothga

2. It cannot be assumed that EC [emergency contraception] decreases teen pregnancy. In fact, some studies indicate it may increase it, along with STDs, by increasing sexual activity.
It's not difficult to imagine how that could happen:

She: No, I don't want to... I could get pregnant.

He: No you won't. We have school tomorrow, and you can get one of this pills after history class.
But if she actually gets the pill and uses it, she won't actually be pregnant, will she?

This is like saying "Building a dam to stop the river will actually make that river go on." It makes little sense if contraception is actually used instead of only talked about.

old comment by

"Parents, not schools, are responsible for decisions related to the welfare of their minor child. Schools undermine parental authority when they are complicit with a student's wishes to hide"

Did you ever stop to consider maybe the students don't have a relationship with their parents good enough to confide in them?
That it's a student's right to keep things from people they don't trust? And parent's don't have a right to violate their children's privacy?
That perhaps their parents are abusive and may be responsible for their health issues?

Seriously, "Dr." Grossman, I wonder if you even are a doctor, because you seem to be unaware of the doctor-patient confidentiality. That if a pregnant teen confides this to their physician, that physician has no right to expose their patients' secrets whenever they feel like it.

old comment by Passerby

Texas has only abstinence-only sex ed and places immense shame on contraceptives. They also have the highest rate of teen pregnancy in the US by far, which skyrocketted immediately after implementing these policies.

Knowing exactly what you're getting into before you're even expected to get into it tends to help you avoid doing something stupid. When stupid can involve teen pregnancy I would hope the value of that would be obvious.

As mentioned by others, not all kids have a healthy enough relationship with their parents to confide in them and not all parents have a healthy idea of sex at all. Even the ones that don't think masturbation will cause demons to rape you at night or blindness often hold off on the talk for unreasonable lengths of time. Some joke they won't let their kids so much as date until they're in their late 20's. Others ain't joking.

Then on the flipside you get fundamentalists who want their kids married with kids of their own by the end of high school and a completely schizophrenic approach to sexual education including how evil sex and masturbation are at the same time as spreading your seed is the focus of a man's life and sex is a marital obligation for women.

old comment by Nicholas Krizov

1. Students in high school are learning how to be functional adults. A critical step towards that is personal responsibility, and that is what this program would encourage.

"Schools undermine parental authority when they are complicit with a student's wishes to hide important health issues from her parents."

And what if the girl's parents have her carry the pregnancy against her will? Or what if they disown her for getting pregnant outside of marriage? There are many good reasons not to share information.

2. "It cannot be assumed that EC [emergency contraception] decreases teen pregnancy"
Explain to me how terminating pregnancies does NOT decrease the number of pregnancies.

3. Ja. The whole point of the EC program is that the students ARE HAVING SEX. It's not like this is meant to prevent immaculate conceptions.

4. "It is highly likely that many parents never hear about the program"
That makes them really shitty parents.

5. And finally the weakest argument. Headaches? Really?

old comment by dionysus

Sexual activity, pregnancy, and contraception are serious health matters. Parents, not schools, are responsible for decisions related to the welfare of their minor child. Schools undermine parental authority when they are complicit with a student's wishes to hide important health issues from her parents.

The schools aren't making the decision, the student is. The school is only providing resources for the student.

It cannot be assumed that EC [emergency contraception] decreases teen pregnancy. In fact, some studies indicate it may increase it, along with STDs, by increasing sexual activity.
It's not difficult to imagine how that could happen

it might not be difficult to image but luckily I prefer to use studies and facts when guiding policy, not imagination.

The success of the program is measured by how many students use it. But the more sex students have, the more girls will need EC. This just isn't sound thinking.

No, it's not. Thankfully, that isn't the thinking. The thinking is that people will have sex regardless of what we tell them so if they use protection, at least they'll be safer.

old comment by Swede

1. Parent don't have the right to violate the rights of their children. If a child risks being beaten up, ostracized or killed by its parents, the school ought to have the right (even the responsibility) to help the child avoiding that.
2. Teen pregnancy is pretty rare in my country. Contraceptives are easily available and affordable, sometimes even free.
If the girl says she doesn't want to have sex, that ought to be good enough for the guy.
3. Students are going to have sex, whether the pill is available or not, silly. If non-emergency contraceptives are available and affordable to teenagers, fewer will need the EC, silly.
4. If there's a risk of students not delivering the letter, then send it in blank-looking envelopes directly to the parents.
5. You can't get headache medication without parental consent? Why not?