To the Editors; It would be unfortunate if the misinformation in Guichon and Mitchell’s (1) paper impaired physician-patient relationships Jehovah’s Witnesses seek to cultivate with caring doctors. The authors advocate a practice to be applied only to Jehovah’s Witnesses, which coerces them to accept blood transfusion by disparaging their religion. Physicians do not denigrate Catholicism to browbeat a Catholic patient into consenting to therapeutic abortion nor ridicule Judaism to coerce a Jewish adherent to accept porcine-derived products. The notion is repugnant to ethical physicians. Guichon and Mitchell create an erroneous impression of ‘shunning’ within the family home. If a member of Jehovah’s Witnesses rejects the biblical injunction on blood, the congregation understands that the person has willingly terminated their membership. However, the door is open for the person to return. Within the family home, spiritual ties have changed but blood ties remain; the marriage relationship and normal family affections and dealings can continue (2). The authors’ life-and-death characterization of transfusion-avoidance strategies is misleading. Recent studies have identified large variations in paediatric transfusion practice with no differences in clinical outcomes (3–5). Their paper also questions information offered by Hospital Liaison Committees (HLCs) for Jehovah’s Witnesses. Regarding HLCs, surgeon Richard Spence commented that “The Jehovah’s Witness church has established local liaison committees consisting of well-informed church members prepared to act as a link between the physician and the patient” (6). On request, HLC members provide medical references from peer-reviewed, mainstream journals or arrange consultations with physicians experienced in transfusion-alternative strategies to supplement the physician-patient discussion, thus alleviating apprehension some clinicians may feel. Accurate information about Jehovah’s Witnesses can be obtained by contacting our information and referral service for physicians at 1-800-265-0327 or by visiting our official Web site at