Search In Fatwa

A Muslim doctor referring patients to other doctors who perform euthanasia and abortion

Question

Am I allowed as a moslim doctor to refer a patient who is aksing for euthanesia or an abortion to a collegue who might be wanting to offer these options for the patient? Am I committing a sin by this?
And what about drugs who contain pork material or alcohol; can I subscribe them to non-moslims, even if there is an option of subscribing the same drugs but without pork material or alcohol?
Awaiting your reply! Jazakom Allah.

Answer

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allaah exalt his mention ) is His slave and Messenger.

We have already issued Fatwa 84065 clarifying that euthanasia is forbidden and it is forbidden for a doctor to help a patient in this regard.

Therefore, it is not permissible for you to refer a patient to a doctor who might do that for him, and if you do so, you are sinful. Allaah Says (what means): {And cooperate in righteousness and piety, but do not cooperate in sin and aggression.}[Quran 5:2]

As regards abortion, in principle, this is forbidden, therefore, it is not permissible to refer a woman to whoever may do that for her because of the previous verse. This is even more forbidden if a woman is pregnant from Zina (fornication or adultery) as this leads to encouraging women to commit Zina.

Nonetheless, abortion may be permissible in case of necessity, like when fearing about the life of the mother, in which case, it is permissible to refer a woman to whoever may do that for her. For more benefit on the ruling on abortion, please refer to Fatwa 82051.

Furthermore, you are not permitted to prescribe for a patient a medicine that has ingredients extracted from pig or alcohol. That is because pig is forbidden as well as alcohol which is the substance that causes drunkenness in intoxicants.

The fact that a person is not a Muslim is not a sound reason for prescribing for him such a medicine because the non-Muslims are addressed by the obligations of the Sharee’ah according to the most preponderant opinion of the scholars  may  Allaah  have  mercy  upon  them.

For more benefit, please refer to Fataawa 85569 and 130134.

Allaah Knows best.

Related Fatwa