“A huge lack of trust of the medical community”: An OB/GYN and medical student discuss the consequences of Louisiana’s abortion ban for the field of health care
For doctors and medical students in states with abortion bans, the overturning of Roe v. Wade has reshaped the way they practice medicine and think about their careers.
For Dr. Nicole Freehill, an OB/GYN in Louisiana, trying to navigate vague laws written by politicians, rather than health care professionals, has had a chilling effect on her field, leaving doctors afraid they will lose their licenses and face fines and prison time simply for caring for their patients.
Dr. Freehill’s mentee, Haley Beavers Khoury, is a medical student whose entire medical education has taken place post-Roe. Together, the two discussed the impact abortion bans like Louisiana’s have not only on patient care, but on training and career opportunities for a generation of doctors. As outspoken advocates for access to reproductive health care, both described the risks they have taken to publicly stand up for their patients and the field of medicine.
“I want to absolutely, no matter what I do, incorporate reproductive health and … sexual health and gender affirming care … into my practice,” said Haley. “But will I be able to do that? And I think it’s just very odd to be building a career with this big, kind of, rain cloud looming over me. It’s really scary.”
Dr. Freehill and Haley’s conversation was recorded by StoryCorps Studios, part of Abortion in America’s collection of interviews with people in Louisiana about the ways in which the state’s abortion ban has affected their lives.
In our exam rooms, in the delivery rooms, we have our own code that we operate under: First, do no harm. These laws put me into a situation where I am doing harm.
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