Memorandum of Understanding for Circumcision Procedure. St. Vincent Hospital, Santa Fe, New Mexico.

On January 31, 1995, after a process of mediation, St. Vincent Hospital in Santa Fe, New Mexico became the first hospital in the world to officially recognize R.N. Conscientious Objectors to infant circumcision.

The conscientious-objector nurses who took part in the mediation process at St. Vincent's Hospital were Ann Lown, Carole Alley, Mary Conant, Naomi Landau, and Betty Katz Sperlich. The success of the mediation was a credit to the skills of Ann Lown, Lucy Moore (the mediator from Western Network), and Diane Justin, Staff Representative of 1199, New Mexico Health Care Employees Union.

The resulting document, known as a Memo Of Understanding for Circumcision Procedure (MOU) was ratified and signed on January 31, 1995. This legally binding document states in part:

"The administration has agreed, within the following guidelines, that the conscientious-objector nurses will be relieved of duties of circumcision. Those duties are: witnessing the consent, dispensing of pre-op medications, preparation of the room, assisting with the procedure, immediate post-op care (such as stopping bleeding and applying Vaseline dressing), cleaning up afterwards (disposal of the amputated foreskin), and stocking the room."

The MOU is not gender specific. This is in accordance with our ethical position to respect the genital integrity of infants of both sexes. The MOU supports our position that the child's right to the body he or she was born with is absolute.

Of great relevance is the provision stating:

"When hiring new nursing staff, the administration will supply them with a copy of the MOU and informed consent package."

This provision guarantees that the MOU is not merely a document relating specifically to currently employed conscientious-objector nurses, but that it informs all newly hired nurses of the hospital's position towards R.N.Conscientious Objection, allows new nurses the freedom to become conscientious objectors, and ensures the viability of this historic document.

The conscientious-objector nurses hope that the MOU will serve as a model for other hospitals across the country and encourage other nurses to feel secure in taking a stand on this important human-rights issue.

[as reported in Revolution, The Journal of Nurse Empowerment, Spring 1996:88)