FAQ

I am registered with the Initiation Society of United Kingdom under the auspices of the Court of the Chief Rabbi of Britain and the Commonwealth. The Initiation Society have a rigorous acceptance criteria and they have a disciplinary board with a complaints procedure. Their contact details are www.initiationsociety.net. The secretary can be contacted on 07804 822 062

Besides being a religious requirement for many, there are a number of health benefits to being circumcised.

Cancer of the penis is virtually unheard of in circumcised men. In uncircumcised men the rate is around 1/600
Females with circumcised partners are at a reduced risk of contracting cancer of the cervix.
Decreased risk of HIV when exposed to the virus. A study in South Africa between a test group of circumcised men were compared to a group of uncircumcised men of similar ages and background. It was initially a two year study, but after one year the study was stopped on ethical grounds with all the uncircumcised men being offered circumcision as the rate of infection for them was so much higher.

The home is a safe environment for your sons’ circumcision. It is known that hospitals and other medical centres can harbour bacteria and infections from other patients.

At your home, this is completely avoided. We bring with our own sterile field, and carry out the procedure with the highest test level of hygiene.

Clinics and doctors frequently use the Plastibell method. We prefer the traditional /scalpel method for a number of reasons.

1.) Time involved. Traditional/ scalpel method procedure takes approximately one minute – Plastibell method takes approximately 10 minutes.

2.) Plastibell involves inserting a foreign body, the ring ,for a number of days. It then has to fall off. The possibility of complications is therefore higher.

3.) Traditional/ scalpel circumcisions heal very neatly.

4.) Traditional/ scalpel method are far less painful. With the Plastibell method, once the anaesthetic wears off, usually on the way home from the hospital or clinic, the baby can be in a lot of pain from the ring.

5.) It is recommended to give as little anaesthetic as possible, especially to new born babies. The traditional/ scalpel method requires less anaesthetic than the Plastibell method, as the procedure itself is quicker and far less painful.

Because the procedure is carried out in line with their religious requirement, using modern, sterile equipment with foremost care to causing the baby minimal pain or distress.

The younger the age the quicker it heals, so circumcision is advised anytime from a few days old. In addition younger babies generally feel less as their nerve endings are not yet full formed, so the earlier the better; but anytime in the babies first year causes minimum pain. Circumcision can be done at any ages provided the patient’s overall health is good.

I will require a clear working area preferably on a table with good lighting, with a changing mat or blanket, nappies, baby wipes and red book prepared. Please don’t feed your baby for one hour before appointment and please purchase a new large tub of petroleum jelly/ Vaseline to remain unused.

Your baby will have double nappies on for the first three days so you can hold him as usual. The double nappies will also prevent him from hurting himself. We will also provide you with gauze and will show you how to apply Vaseline. You will be asked to change the baby every two hours for the first twelve hours. That is all that is required. Both written and verbal instructions will be given at the time. We will be in touch with you at regular intervals during the first 12 hours. In most cases it will be okay to bath your son after 24 hours, obviously being extra careful not to rub the circumcision area especially when drying.

We will be in touch with you, calling you for updates on your baby following the circumcision. We are available 24 hours a day for any concerns however small they may be – day or night. Your peace of mind is our priority.

Unlike other methods, shortly after the procedure is completed, the baby no longer experiences pain. On some occasions when the baby passes urine they can experience momentary discomfort. Your baby’s circumcision should be fully healed around a week to ten days.

Mohel is the Hebrew word describing a man who does circumcision.

Yes, that is true. Queen Victoria insisted that her sons be circumcised by a Jewish Mohel, and Prince Charles was circumcised at Buckingham’s palace by the Mohel, Yaakov Snowman.

Besides being a most fundamental religious requirement for Muslims, Jews & some Christians, circumcision also has huge health benefits.

• Circumcised men are much less susceptible to cancer of the penis.

• Females with circumcised partners are at a reduced risk of contracting cancer of the cervix of the womb than females with uncircumcised partners.

• Circumcision improves the hygiene and cleanliness of the penis.

• Circumcision reduces the risk of getting balanopothitis & balanitis (inflammation of foreskin & glans).

• Circumcision decreases the risk of HIV (AIDs) in men.

• Circumcision eliminates the risks of phimosis (the inability to retract the foreskin during an erection) and paraphimosis (the inability to relax the foreskin after an erection).

• Circumcision reduces the risk of urinary tract infections.

When done professionally by a qualified & experienced specialist, complications are very rare, so circumcision poses no significant risk at all.

Yes it is. Indeed there are some unscrupulous individuals and cheap clinics out there offering this service. Some of them may claim to be doctors but that is of little comfort since circumcision is not part of doctor’s training.

Rabbi Merlin however, is a long standing member of The Initiation Society. The Initiation Society was set up more than 250 years ago, and is the only body of it’s kind in the UK. It’s role is to train, examine & monitor it’s members in the field of baby-circumcision SPECIFICALLY, to ensure that they are able to provide the highest standards of professionalism and service. Only if you use a member of The Initiation Society are you assured that your baby is in reliable hands.

Most certainly! The circumcision is performed as Sharia Law prescribes. Indeed many Muslims prefer this traditional manner of circumcision in line with the traditions of Islam, as opposed to the modern Plastibell/ring method.

The Initiation Society was set up in 1745 to train, qualify and monitor its members in the field of circumcision. It is the only body of its kind in the whole of Europe. Choosing a circumcision specialist who is a member of The Initiation Society gives you peace of mind & assurance that your baby is in good hands. Please note that even if you get a doctor to do the circumcision, you have no way of knowing that they specialise in circumcision, since circumcision is not part of a doctor’s training.

The procedure for the Plastibell method is as follows: First one has to inject A FEW TIMES into the base of the penis. A probe & a haemostat are then used to detach the foreskin from the glans. Once that is done, using a scissors one makes a dorsal cut straight down the foreskin all the way to the base of the glans. The Plastibell ring is then forced down, in between the foreskin and the glans. After pulling the foreskin back up, a ligature (a type of string) is tied VERY TIGHTLY on the outer side of the foreskin, CRUSHING it in between the ring & the ligature and blocking any further blood circulation. Once the ring is tightly in place, using a scissors the foreskin is cut slowly all the way round just above the ring. Finally the handle of the ring is broken off leaving the baby with the ring around his penis, tied very tightly by the ligature. You can watch the whole procedure here.

This procedure requires painful injections, takes approximately 15 minutes (!) and it leaves the baby with a plastic ring tied TIGHTLY on his penis, normally for a week or more!

So why is the Plastibell method not recommended?

• It requires painful injections.

• The procedure takes around 15 minutes as opposed to a minute or two.

• Since the area goes through a lot of trauma and a ligature remains in place crushing the foreskin, once the anaesthetic wears off, the baby can be in a lot of pain.

• The baby is left with a plastic ring & ligature firmly attached to his penis, often for as long as a week or more, which can be uncomfortable & could be an invitation to infection.

• The ring doesn’t always fall off on its own and further surgery could be required to remove it.

• Once the ring eventually falls off, the foreskin sometimes grows back on to the glans (above the corona) meaning that further surgery could be required to re-expose the glans.

lthough the whole appointment lasts about an hour, the actual procedure is very quick – usually only a minute or two. This is one of the reasons that this method of circumcision is much preferred to the Plastibell/ring method which takes as long as 15 minutes!

All the necessary supplies are provided. The only thing you need to get is a large (250ml) tub of vaseline, which can also be provided upon request. It is useful to have a bottle of baby oil at home but it is not actually required for the circumcision.