Many JW patients have already thought through their own beliefs regarding transfusions and carry a document that very clearly outlines their preferences. The goal is not to decide what people should believe and whether those beliefs are consistent, but rather to respect the patient’s views and beliefs and treat the individual in accordance with those beliefs. Some will take albumin, but very few will take fresh frozen plasma. Most JWs will not permit cell saver or red blood cell transfusion. It is critical to sit down with patients who are Jehovah’s Witnesses and very clearly review what they will and will not permit their surgeon to transfuse and when. Instead, the ACS proposes the following best practices to consider in the approach to care of the JW patient. Because these desires are not applicable to JW patients as a group, the unintended consequences of an overly prescriptive document or blanket recommendations could harm individual patients. Each person who is a Jehovah’s Witness is unique and will have personal ideas about what is and what is not acceptable for them to take into their body.
Jehovah witness medical beliefs how to#
To attempt to give recommendations about when and what to transfuse (blood, plasma, cell saver), how to respond in an emergency, and so on, could have serious unintended consequences.
It is not possible to provide blanket guidelines or standards for the care of JW patients.
To provide optimal care for patients who are Jehovah’s Witnesses (JWs), surgeons should aim to respect and accommodate each patient’s values and target the best outcome possible given the patient’s desires and his/her clinical condition.
Furthermore, surgeons do not want to contribute to the death of a patient, particularly a patient whose death might be prevented by transfusing blood. Surgeons highly value and respect patient autonomy and simultaneously desire to provide high-quality, effective treatment. The Board of Regents approved this statement at its June 2018 meeting in Chicago, IL. The American College of Surgeons (ACS) Committee on Ethics developed a Statement on Recommendations for Surgeons Caring for Patients Who Are Jehovah’s Witnesses.
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