Breathalyser for pregnant women at issue

SIR,

Deborah Coleman’s opinion piece (6 Mar 2019) will certainly rattle the bars of the mind of the commuter on the Dublin tram. To imply that it is wrong to subject a woman to a breathalyser test to ascertain whether or not she smokes should be qualified.

Certainly, it is appropriate under the circumstances for society and its medical practitioners to act within what it perceives to be the best interests of both mother and any likely offspring, and that could involve having to know a relevant medical history in order to circumvent or prepare for possible events after birth.

Any mother-to-be would be silly not to disclose relevant medical information, such as a pre-smoking condition. Should they not do so, then they put themselves and their foetus at risk.

If healthcare professionals suspect that a pregnant patient might be in denial or lying to them about their dependency on a drug, such as tobacco in this instance, then for the sake of both mother and child, the professional would be remiss in not undertaking steps to determine the true state of affairs.

The use of words such as ‘breathalysing’ in this context is unfortunate because it serves to conflate ideas with that of driving whilst under an influence, which is a crime, whereas being pregnant under an influence is not,

John D Mahony, 5 Bluewater View, Mt Pleasant, Christchurch 8081, New Zealand