Sacked St Andrew's Toowoomba Hospital governors are planning legal action after the Presbyterian Church of Queensland abruptly removed them from their posts amid tensions over the hospital's abortion policy and the church's influence on operations.
The PCQ dismissed 12 of the hospital's governors last week.
Yesterday, former board members said they were planning a legal challenge to their dismissal and bristled at perceptions they took a pro-choice stance on abortion.
Former board member Paul McMahon said the sacked governors refused to back a motion suggesting the hospital not perform abortions unless the mother was threatened with immediate death.
But he said the hospital's current position on abortion was "hardly a loose policy".
"The hospital already has very, very strict termination laws such that there were only two terminations last year," he said.
"One related to a dead baby in the womb and the other related to a baby that would not survive outside the womb.
"What's happened now is that the hospital and past governors are being painted as pro-choice. That sickens me."
Mr McMahon said the sacked governors were considering defamation proceedings and also believed the church contravened corporations law when it asked governors up for re-election to sign a nomination form pledging to act according to the tenets of the church.
"[The law] says that a director's first duty is to the organisation, you can't have two masters," he said.
"We said we couldn't sign them because in our view they contravene corporations law."
PCQ moderator Graeme McKay told ABC radio yesterday morning media reports of the sackings had focused too heavily on the abortion issue.
He said the governors were removed last week because they were trying to limit the church's influence on the hospital.
"The reason they were removed is some of these governors were seen to be taking steps to remove the church from the hospital," he said.
"The Presbyterian Church does have a statement on abortion and some of the board members took an issue with the church's position on abortion."
Former St Andrew's vice-chairman Jock Lambie said he still hasn't been notified by the church of his dismissal.
He said he received a phone call from Mr Fairweather last Monday saying he had been sacked three hours before a board meeting he had expected to attend.
Dr Lambie said he expected a review of the hospital's abortion policy to be the new board's first order of business.
However he defended the existing stance on abortion.
"The only abortions that are done are when the baby is not expected to survive," he said.
"They [the church] leave that up to God. That's alright except none of them are women, so they don't know what it's like carrying a monster in their belly.
"The two most recent terminations that were done, the babies had no heads. How would you like to carry that, knowing it was there, for an extra 20 weeks to go through a painful labour and produce a child that lives for five minutes?"
Yesterday, St Andrew's chief executive Ray Fairweather said the hospital would follow the wishes of the new board of governors, which is expected to review the hospital's abortion policy.
Mr Fairweather said he would have no problem working with the new board appointed by the PCQ.
"[A change in abortion policy] is up to the board of governors," he said.
"I have 35 years' experience working with boards of directors, I've established new boards, I've worked with any range of boards and this is just another situation that I have to work with."
Read more: http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/abortion-furore-rages-after-church-sacks-hospital-board-20110627-1gn3o.html#ixzz1QZZxQIr7
