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Framing the fetus in medical work: rituals and practices

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  • Williams, Clare

Abstract

What does it mean to investigate the fetus, and what might be the potential consequences? Although a number of feminists have engaged with the debate around the status of the fetus in terms of the possible implications for women, discussion of fetuses has been avoided by many feminists, in response to the politics around the abortion debate. However, there has recently been a move to explore the ways in which the meanings and significance of the fetus can be socially constructed. Set within a United Kingdom context, this paper focuses on two areas which are arguably changing perceptions of the fetus: the recent 'discovery' of fetal 'pain'; and the growing recognition of the fetus as a patient. One of the key concerns of those who support the autonomy of women is that any increasing discourse around the concept of fetal patienthood may promote the notion of fetal personhood, which in turn may affect the status of pregnant women. In exploring perceptions of the fetus, this article firstly cites some of the key policy documents and medical articles which were published during the 1990s, looking at apparent shifts in the ways in which the fetus is discussed in terms of pain and patienthood. It then explores how practitioners from different disciplines talked about fetal pain and patienthood in relation to the clinical setting. Although this paper does not provide conclusive evidence of a wholesale shift in terms of how the fetus is perceived by practitioners, it does point to subtle shifts occurring, which may or may not be significant. It is important to track such shifts closely, primarily because of the potential impact on women, but also for others involved, including practitioners. Such tracking needs to be set within specific cultural and policy contexts.

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  • Williams, Clare, 2005. "Framing the fetus in medical work: rituals and practices," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 60(9), pages 2085-2095, May.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:60:y:2005:i:9:p:2085-2095
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    1. Geoffrey J. D. Hewings & Michael Sonis & Moss Madden & Yoshio Kimura, 1999. "Introduction," Advances in Spatial Science, in: Geoffrey J. D. Hewings & Michael Sonis & Moss Madden & Yoshio Kimura (ed.), Understanding and Interpreting Economic Structure, chapter 1, pages 1-12, Springer.
    2. Williams, Clare & Alderson, Priscilla & Farsides, Bobbie, 2002. "Too many choices? Hospital and community staff reflect on the future of prenatal screening," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 55(5), pages 743-753, September.
    3. Michael Allingham, 1999. "Introduction," Palgrave Macmillan Books, in: Rational Choice, pages 1-6, Palgrave Macmillan.
    4. Williams, Clare & Alderson, Priscilla & Farsides, Bobbie, 2002. "Is nondirectiveness possible within the context of antenatal screening and testing?," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 54(3), pages 339-347, February.
    5. Press, Nancy & Browner, C. H., 1997. "Why women say yes to prenatal diagnosis," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 45(7), pages 979-989, October.
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    Cited by:

    1. Becker, Andréa & Hann, Lena R., 2021. "“It makes it more real”: Examining ambiguous fetal meanings in abortion care," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 272(C).
    2. Williams, Clare & Ehrich, Kathryn & Farsides, Bobbie & Scott, Rosamund, 2007. "Facilitating choice, framing choice: Staff views on widening the scope of preimplantation genetic diagnosis in the UK," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 65(6), pages 1094-1105, September.
    3. Pfeffer, Naomi, 2008. "What British women say matters to them about donating an aborted fetus to stem cell research: A focus group study," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 66(12), pages 2544-2554, June.
    4. Goldblatt Hyatt, E & Wilpers, Abigail & Bahtiyar, Mert Ozan & Hu, Yunzhe & Leon-Martinez, Daisy & Chervenak, Frank A. & McCoyd, Judith L.M., 2024. ""I don't have a telephone to the fetus": Clinicians' conceptions of fetal patienthood in maternal-fetal surgery counseling," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 342(C).
    5. Williams, Clare & Sandall, Jane & Lewando-Hundt, Gillian & Heyman, Bob & Spencer, Kevin & Grellier, Rachel, 2005. "Women as moral pioneers? Experiences of first trimester antenatal screening," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 61(9), pages 1983-1992, November.
    6. Graham, Ruth H. & Robson, Stephen C. & Rankin, Judith M., 2008. "Understanding feticide: An analytic review," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 66(2), pages 289-300, January.
    7. Mirlesse, Véronique & Ville, Isabelle, 2013. "The uses of ultrasonography in relation to foetal malformations in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 168-175.
    8. Kent, Julie, 2008. "The fetal tissue economy: From the abortion clinic to the stem cell laboratory," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 67(11), pages 1747-1756, December.

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