Female genital mutilation - caring for patients and child protection
Guidance from the Ethics Department
July 2006
“Female genital mutilation is a fundamental human rights issue with adverse health and social implications … [it] violates the rights of girls and women to bodily integrity and results in perpetuating gender inequality.” (UK All Party Parliamentary Group on Population, Development and Reproductive Health) [Go to reference1]
Basic principles
- The BMA supports the effective enforcement of the Female Genital Mutilation (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) Act 2003 and the Prohibition of Female Genital Mutilation (Scotland) Act 2005 which outlaw Female Genital Mutilation.
- There is a pressing need to raise awareness about the health and legal issues, and about the services and sources of information that are available amongst communities that practise female genital mutilation.
- All medical personnel must be trained in cultural sensitivity and how to meet the needs of women who have undergone female genital mutilation.
- Matters of female genital mutilation must be handled sensitively taking into account differing cultural issues, but the child’s welfare is paramount.
- Risk of female genital mutilation should be recognised as legitimate grounds for refugee and asylum status.
- The BMA supports the findings of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Population, Development and Reproductive Health that:
- the Department of Health should set up a health co-ordination team to address an inter-agency approach to implement good practice guidelines;
- there should be a common code of conduct developed for dealing with female genital mutilation;
- each Health Authority and Trust should ensure that there is a specialist in the Trust who is responsible for training GPs, family planning professionals, midwives and other healthcare professionals in female genital mutilation prevention, treatment and counselling;
- the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists should promote and distribute guidelines on female genital mutilation and address as a priority the education and training of doctors on this issue.
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