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Brief Overview
Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Healthcare Services

The Ethical and Religious Directives (ERDs) provide normative guidance and ethical direction to providers of health care in a Catholic-sponsored health care setting. Especially recommended for use by sponsors, administrators, professional caregivers and ethics committees, they pertain to a variety of issues involving respect for the dignity of the human person as understood and taught by the Catholic Church, and maintaining and promoting Catholic mission and identity in health care. As scientific knowledge and technology expand and develop, and as social and cultural changes raise new moral questions, the Church's teaching on certain moral matters will likely be developed or clarified, although an outright reversal of any existing teaching is highly unlikely. Any such developments will, from time to time, require revisions to the ERDs. For example, a number of changes to Part Six were adopted and promulgated by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops in June of 2001. These changes were intended to clarify certain issues concerning the application of the principles of cooperation. In addition, the Appendix to the 1995 edition of the ERDs was removed from the 2001 edition. Experience had shown that the brief articulation of the principles of cooperation presented in the Appendix did not sufficiently clarify appropriate interpretations of those principles, and gave rise to difficulties in their concrete application.

The Directives are divided into six parts, comprised of a contextual introduction and individual numbered directives (which must be interpreted in light of the contextual introduction). Below is a brief description of each section:

  1. The Social Responsibility of Catholic Healthcare Services, addressing the issues of human dignity and the right to life, the biblical mandate to care for the poor, responsibility to the common good, responsible stewardship of human and material resources and the right of Catholic providers to refrain from procedures opposed to human dignity;


  2. The Pastoral and Spiritual Responsibility of Catholic Healthcare, addressing the need to provide care which embraces the physical, psychological, social and spiritual dimensions of human beings;


  3. The Professional-Patient Relationship, addressing the issues pertaining to these relationships, including mutual respect, trust, honesty, confidentiality and informed consent;


  4. Issues in Care for the Beginning of Life, addressing the need to care for human life from conception until natural death, encompassing infertility interventions and care of women and the newly born both during and after pregnancy;


  5. Issues in Care for the Dying, addressing and defining compassionate response to the whole person, especially in his or her illness, suffering and death; and


  6. Forming New Partnerships with Healthcare Organizations and Providers, addressing the importance of Catholic health care providers to maintain the integrity of their mission or religious and ethical identity, following the principles of cooperation.

Articles

Peter Cataldo and John Haas. "Institutional Cooperation: The ERDs," Health Progress 83, 6 (Nov-Dec. 2002): 49-57 & 60.

Sr. Jean deBlois, CSJ, PhD, & Rev. Kevin D. O'Rourke, OP, JCD. "Introducing the Revised Directives: What Does the New Version of the Ethical and Religious Directives Mean for Catholic Healthcare?" Health Progress 76, 3 (April 1995): 18-22.

Sr. Jean deBlois, CSJ, PhD, & Rev. Kevin D. O'Rourke, OP, JCD. "Care for the Beginning of Life: The Revised Ethical and Religious Directives Discuss Abortion, Contraception, and Assisted Reproduction." Health Progress 76, 7 (September-October 1995): 36-40.

Sr. Jean deBlois, CSJ, PhD, & Rev. Kevin D. O'Rourke, OP, JCD. "Issues at the End of Life: Suicide, Euthanasia, and Life-Prolonging Therapy are Discussed in the Revised Ethical and Religious Directives." Health Progress 76, 8 (November-December 1995): 24-28.

Sr. Jean deBlois, CSJ, PhD. & Rev. Kevin D. O'Rourke, OP, JCD. "Healthcare and Social Responsibility: The Revised Ethical and Religious Directives Clarify the Catholic Position." Health Progress 76, 4 (May 1995): 46-50, 58.

Sr. Jean deBlois, CSJ, PhD, & Rev. Kevin D. O'Rourke, OP, JCD. "Safeguarding Patients' Dignity: The Revised Ethical and Religious Directives Discuss the Spiritual Care of Patients and the Protection of their Rights." Health Progress 76, 5 (June 1995): 39-43, 48.

National Catholic Bioethics Center. "Cooperating with Non-Catholic Partners." Ethics & Medics 23, 11 (November 1998): 1-5.

Ron Hamel. "Part Six of the Directives," Health Progress 83, 6 (Nov-Dec. 2002): 37-39 & 59.

Tom Kopfensteiner. "Developing Directive 58: A Look at the History of the Directive on Nutrition and Hydration," Health Progress 81, 3 (May-June 2000): 20-23.

Tom Kopfensteiner. "Responsibility and Cooperation," Health Progress 83, 6 (Nov-Dec. 2002): 40-42 & 59.

Rev. Kevin D. O'Rourke, OP. "Applying the Directives: The Ethical and Religious Directives Concerning Three Medical Situations Require Some Elucidation." Health Progress 79, 4 (July-August 1998): 64-69.

Rev. Kevin D. O'Rourke, OP. "Catholic Healthcare and Sterilization," Health Progress 83, 6 (Nov-Dec. 2002): 43-48 & 60.

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