Father criticises hospitals over barriers to infant circumcision
The father of a boy who was refused a circumcision at a Dublin hospital has criticised authorities for being insensitive to his cultural rights.
Felix Daramola, a prominent African member of Fine Gael and vice president of the African-Irish Organisation, said he was shocked to discover in a letter from the National Children’s Hospital in Tallaght that it has stopped performing circumcisions on newborn boys.
The letter directed him instead to two private hospitals, UPMC Beacon Hospital in Sandyford and Mount Carmel in Churchtown, for enquiries about the procedure.
Daramola said when he contacted the Beacon, he was informed that the circumcision would cost “€1,400 plus an initial consultation fee which was not specified to me”. He added that Mont Carmel said its staff “do not carry out infant circumcision”.
Daramola accused UPMC Beacon Hospital of “ripping off” parents like him because of their cultural practices.
“How many people at this particular period in Ireland can pay that amount for a day surgery?” he said, comparing the quote to the much lower cost of circumcisions available in the UK, with many hospitals and clinics there charging £250 (€290).
He added that many parents are taking their children on day trips to Britain for the procedure.
When contacted for comment by Metro Éireann, UPMC Beacon Hospital declined to state the total amount it charges for the procedure.
In a statement, the hospital said that it “performs circumcisions for referred patients, adult and paediatric, on both medical and personal grounds. The procedure costs €950 plus consultant and anaesthetist fees as appropriate. This figure is similar to that of other healthcare facilities and is typically covered by a patient’s health insurer.”
The hospital also refuted the “spurious claim” among some members of the immigrant community that it may have influenced the HSE’s decision to end circumcision in public hospitals.
“This is a very serious and unfounded allegation,” said the statement. “UPMC Beacon Hospital has never sought to influence the practices of other hospitals or the HSE.”
The HSE did not respond to Metro Éireann’s request for comment by press time.
Meanwhile, Daramola warned that those parents who want their infant boys circumcised but cannot afford private fees or travel to the UK would likely look for unlicensed practitioners to carry out the procedure in their homes.
“Remember what happened in Waterford when a boy died from a botched circumcision,” he said, referring to the death of 29-day-old Callis Osaghae in 2003
In an exclusive interview with Metro Éireann in September of that year, his father Idehen Osaghae said he decided to seek the services of a private practitioner to circumcise Callis after he claimed Waterford Regional Hospital would not confirm when or if they would carry out the procedure.
Daramola said that with Ireland today having a much larger immigrant population than in 2003, such tragic incidents could be repeated several times over if Irish public hospitals continue to refuse circumcision, and private clinics continue to charge high rates.
He called on the Government to compel the HSE to assist all children’s hospitals in Ireland to provide cultural circumcision for male children.
Daramola said the HSE could look at charging a flat fee of €200 per procedure, which would also ensure money that might otherwise be spent out of the country would go back into the Irish economy.
“This is a part of people’s religion and culture,” he said.
The story comes in the wake of a growing debate in Europe over the absence of consent involved in male infant circumcision, following a German court ruling last month that the procedure constitutes bodily injury to a child.
