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Islam and termination of pregnancy for genetic conditions in Pakistan: implications for Pakistani health care providers
Author(s) -
Jafri H.,
Ahmed S.,
Ahmed M.,
Hewison J.,
Raashid Y.,
Sheridan E.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
prenatal diagnosis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.956
H-Index - 97
eISSN - 1097-0223
pISSN - 0197-3851
DOI - 10.1002/pd.3987
Subject(s) - library science , medicine , family medicine , sociology , medical education , computer science
Prenatal diagnosis (PND) services have been available in Pakistan for over a decade, where Islam is the faith of over 95% of the population. This paper presents Islam’s stance on termination of pregnancy (TOP), the availability of a fatwa (religious ruling issued by Islamic scholars) in Pakistan for abnormalities, and its implications for health care providers (HCPs). The Quran (Islamic scripture) does not explicitly address TOP. Therefore, Islam’s stance on TOP for abnormalities is open to interpretation. Instead, scholars within different Islamic sects (schools of thought) have various viewpoints on TOP based on their interpretations of related Quranic verses, such as descriptions of the process of fertilization, development of the fetus and ensoulment (soul-breathing):