I am working on refining the estimate of deaths related to the Watchtower's blood policy, especially as they relate to children.
Those of us who spent many years inside the WTS can testify to the large percentage of JW children who are either disfellowshiped or simply walk away upon attaining adulthood. My guess is that the number is approximately 50%.
We can come up with some pretty solid numbers regarding how many JW children die because of the blood policy. What I would like is to be able to estimate how many of those deaths are pointless in the sense that a significant percentage of these children statistically would have left the WTS of their own free will (or been DF) had they simply survived into adulthood.
If there is a statistician among us, or someone given to statistical analysis, could you please help us develop a sound method for estimating what percentage of JW children actually remain JWs.
I cannot answer your question, but a statement of yours begs another question from me:
: We can come up with some pretty solid numbers regarding how many JW children die because of the blood policy.
How can you do this? The WTS loves statistics, but they never publish numbers about their followers who've died refusing blood transfusions, have they? Even if they have, have they also published information about who were children who died and who were adults that died?
Where do these "solid" numbers come from? Do they include some child in e.g. Ukraine who died in a hospital because their parents refused blood for that child?
I haven't read your Web Site for a while so please forgive me if I'm not-up-to-date on how you derive your numbers.
I also cannot answer your question but I would like to ask if in the USA they have the same policies as they do in the UK and Aust?
In those two countries.....children as minors are considered as being under governmental protection, therefore no parent can refuse on behalf of their child for a blood transfusion to be administered.
I have also been told by the neo-natal dept of a major hospital that many JW's DO have blood transfusions.........but in secret, and the doctors fully co-operate with this secrecy.
Ana btw....I also would like the stats, but like Farkel I do not see it as a possibility.
I'm not going to let the cat out of the bag since we hope to publish this, but yes it can be done with available data for the the general population, occurence of disease, actual use of blood, etc. A bit tricky but definitely possible.
To answer Ladonna's questions, government policies vary widely from one country to the next. Some are very protective and some offer almost no protection at all. And yes, many JW's secretly take blood now. The medical community has heard our message loud and clear.
