DOCSLIB.ORG

Unsafe Abortion in Nigeria in Certain Circumstances Nurses Could Participate

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Unsafe Abortion in Nigeria in Certain Circumstances Nurses Could Participate LETTERS TO THE EDITOR J Fam Plann Reprod Health Care: first published as 10.1783/147118907781005038 on 1 July 2007. Downloaded from Nurses and abortion there were plenty of expressions available which Vincent Argent, FRCOG, LLB Vincent Argent and Lin Pavey have concluded, in would have had that effect. Surgical termination Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist an analysis of the House of Lords case Royal using modern methods was not amongst the (Lead in Sexual Health), Addenbrooke’s College of Nursing v DHSS [1981] 1 AC 800 procedures envisaged, and it was certainly not Cambridge University Teaching Hospital, (“the RCN case”), that without any change in the foreseen or foreseeable that it might be Cambridge, UK. E-mail: [email protected] law, nurses can legally perform surgical induced suggested that nurses might be significant abortion.1 Their article contains some dangerous operators in such procedures. Lin Pavey, RGN legal misconceptions. The dissenting views cannot merely be Member of RCN Nurses Working in Termination The RCN case concerned the participation of discounted. They emphasised, very powerfully, of Pregnancy Network nurses in prostaglandin-induced abortions. The the need for great caution in the construction of House of Lords decided by a majority (3:2) that the statute, and in particular the need for judges to Unsafe abortion in Nigeria in certain circumstances nurses could participate. be careful not to usurp the function of Parliament Each minute of every day, nearly 40 women The RCN case decided that for the procedure and engage in judicial legislation. The danger of undergo dangerous, unsafe abortions.1 These that the court was considering: such judicial legislation is particularly acute since unsafe abortions are often performed by unskilled (a) Medical abortion is a process. it is a long time since the Abortion Act 1967 was providers or under unhygienic condition or both. (b) The process may be effected by a team. enacted; abortion practice has changed Estimates based on figures for 2000 indicate that (c) Section 1(1) of the Abortion Act 1967 immeasurably since Parliament debated and 19 million unsafe abortions take place each year permits delegation to nurses of some acts voted. and an estimated 681000 women die as which form part of the process. This includes The RCN case draws no distinction in consequences of unsafe abortion, and almost all acts that have a direct abortifacient effect. principle between medical and surgical abortion. occur in developing countries.2 (d) The process must be initiated by a registered But that does not mean that all acts which are In Nigeria, as is also the case in most medical practitioner, and must be under his done or it is envisaged might be done by nurses developing countries, unsafe abortion has control throughout, in the sense that anything in the performance of surgical abortions fall assumed a serious public health problem, and done other than by him must be done within the boundaries of appropriate delegation. induced unsafe abortion has been established as pursuant to his instructions. That is the basic error into which Argent and an important contributor to maternal morbidity (e) What amounts to acceptable delegation may Pavey fall. and mortality. In Nigeria, induced abortion is a be determined by “accepted medical So: does the RCN case say that it is lawful criminal offence both for the seeker and the practice”. for nurses to perform surgical abortion? No, it provider. The penalty is 14 and 7 years jail One of the judges in the majority, Lord does not. The position in relation to nurses’ sentences, respectively, for the provider and Keith, expressly regarded the decision as one on involvement in procedures other than that client. These penalties notwithstanding, induced its own facts. He said: “…it remains to consider specifically considered in the RCN case is unsafe abortions are still performed on a daily whether, on the facts of this case the termination wholly unclear. It would be very unsafe for basis both by skilled and unskilled personnel. can properly be regarded as being “by a anyone to act on the basis of the assertions in the There are approximately 610 000 abortions registered medical practitioner”2 [emphasis my Argent and Pavey article. If it is seriously performed in Nigeria annually with an abortion own]. This means that when considering an proposed that nurses should perform surgical rate of 25.4 per 1000; of these, 60% are thought abortion procedure, unless one is dealing with abortions then the matter should be considered to be unsafe.3 In Nigeria, unsafe abortion precisely the procedure that the RCN case again by Parliament. A ruling on the point by any contributes up to 20% of maternal mortality, and considered, it cannot be asserted that a majority court lower than the House of Lords is unlikely those women that survive are faced with of the House of Lords says that the procedure to give an answer sufficiently definitive to lay to complications such as sepsis, vesicovaginal falls within Section 1(1). rest the doubts of those affected by the issue. fistula, anaemia, ruptured uterus (sometimes Although the RCN case is an important ending in hysterectomy), amongst others. statement of the meaning of Section 1(1), it Charles Foster, MA(Cantab), MRCVS Factors associated with this high morbidity leaves some important questions unanswered. Barrister, Outer Temple Chambers, London, UK. and mortality from unsafe abortion in Nigeria It is plain that “accepted medical practice” E-mail: [email protected] include restrictive abortion law, activity of itself cannot be the correct test, unless it is to be quacks and untrained providers, poor health- References seeking behaviour of women, poor and read as “medical practice accepted by the courts”. 1 Argent V, Pavey L. Can nurses legally perform surgical The main difficulty with making “accepted induced abortion? J Fam Plann Reprod Health Care inadequate post-abortion care facilities in health medical practice” the touchstone of appropriate 2007; 33: 79–82. institutions, inadequate access to family planning delegation is that the Act itself puts obvious limits 2 Royal College of Nursing v DHSS [1981] 1 AC 800; p. counselling, information and services and poor 835. on the use of that idea. Suppose that it became the 3 Note, for example, Bolitho v City and Hackney Health socioeconomic status of Nigerian women. majority opinion amongst gynaecologists that all Authority [1998] AC 232; also the High Court of This suffering and these deaths are steps in an abortion should be performed by Australia in Rogers v Whitaker (1992) 109 ALR 625. preventable and the solutions are well known, nurses. It would then, in a sense, be “accepted available, practical and cost-effective, but they http://jfprhc.bmj.com/ medical practice” that nurses should perform all Reply are too often neglected because of political and steps. But that would be prohibited by the Act. It Charles Foster’s critique is useful and agrees that social constraints. The abortion law in force in could not be legally accepted medical practice. abortion law should be modernised. The Abortion Nigeria today is still the one adopted from the Medical practice looks to the law to determine Act 1967 does not reflect the realities of current British colonial government of 1861. No what is acceptable, not vice versa.3 Any test that clinical practice and the increasing role of nurses reasonable amendment or modification has requires the law to defer entirely to medical in the provision of abortion care. been made to keep apace with time. The practice in determining the correct construction The statute could be changed but a test case existing abortion law prevents the of the Act must be a wrong test. Although in other in the House of Lords or even a ruling from the institutionalisation of safe abortion practices areas of the law (notably clinical negligence), the Department of Health would suffice. Pro-choice and drives abortion underground, thereby law has great respect for the views of responsible and anti-abortion groups hold opposing views on encouraging the use of quacks and unqualified on September 25, 2021 by guest. Protected copyright. medical practitioners, and is importantly (and how the law should be changed but it is important providers who cause distress and suffering to often decisively) informed by those views, it has that a new approach reflects modern clinical the women concerned. It also restricts long been one of the pillars of medical law that need. counselling and training of health professionals the courts, not the profession, set the standard. If Foster does state that the RCN case draws no on abortion-related issues. that is true of standard setting in the common law, distinction in principle between surgical and Post-abortion care, an unfortunately still more should it be true of statutory medical abortion and this is, in fact, the hub of neglected vital tool of the reproductive health construction. our argument. In other jurisdictions, nurses and care package for Nigerian women, should be So what must have been meant was “legally other providers are already providing a safe seriously revisited, revitalised and promoted in acceptable” medical practice. On the facts surgical service. This will assume increasing Nigeria as a very important intervention strategy considered in the RCN case, it was found that importance in the UK where the Royal College of to deal with complications arising from unsafe the medical induction procedure was acceptable Obstetricians and Gynaecologists has recognised abortions. Women who have unintended and accordingly fell within the boundaries of s. doctors’ relative disinterest in providing this pregnancies should have ready access to reliable 1(1). essential service to women. information and compassionate counselling.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Anticipated Effects of the U.S. Mexico City Policy on the Attainability of the Millennium Development Goals and Future Development Efforts in Sub- Saharan Africa
    Anthós Volume 2 Issue 1 Article 1 4-2010 Anticipated Effects of the U.S. Mexico City Policy on the Attainability of the Millennium Development Goals and future Development Efforts in sub- Saharan Africa Katherine Clare Alexander Portland State University Follow this and additional works at: https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/anthos Part of the Political History Commons, Public Policy Commons, Women's Health Commons, and the Women's History Commons Let us know how access to this document benefits ou.y Recommended Citation Alexander, Katherine Clare (2010) "Anticipated Effects of the U.S. Mexico City Policy on the Attainability of the Millennium Development Goals and future Development Efforts in sub-Saharan Africa," Anthós: Vol. 2: Iss. 1, Article 1. https://doi.org/10.15760/anthos.2010.1 This open access Article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial- ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). All documents in PDXScholar should meet accessibility standards. If we can make this document more accessible to you, contact our team. Anticipated Effects of the U.S. Mexico City Policy on the Attainability of the Millennium Development Goals and future Development Efforts in sub-Saharan Africa By: Katherine Clare Alexander In the low-income countries of sub-Saharan Africa, the performance of pyramidal reproductive health and family planning services with public outreach initiatives has not met the expectations or the needs of the communities they serve. Insufficient case management, limited management capacity and referral and communication failures are challenges faced on the delivery level, while on the policy level these health clinics face insufficient coordination among organizations and weak links between programs (Schneider, 2006).
    [Show full text]
  • Personhood Seeking New Life with Republican Control Jonathan Will Mississippi College School of Law, [email protected]
    Mississippi College School of Law MC Law Digital Commons Journal Articles Faculty Publications 2018 Personhood Seeking New Life with Republican Control Jonathan Will Mississippi College School of Law, [email protected] I. Glenn Cohen Harvard Law School, [email protected] Eli Y. Adashi Brown University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://dc.law.mc.edu/faculty-journals Part of the Health Law and Policy Commons Recommended Citation 93 Ind. L. J. 499 (2018). This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Faculty Publications at MC Law Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal Articles by an authorized administrator of MC Law Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Personhood Seeking New Life with Republican Control* JONATHAN F. WILL, JD, MA, 1. GLENN COHEN, JD & ELI Y. ADASHI, MD, MSt Just three days prior to the inaugurationof DonaldJ. Trump as President of the United States, Representative Jody B. Hice (R-GA) introducedthe Sanctity of Human Life Act (H R. 586), which, if enacted, would provide that the rights associatedwith legal personhood begin at fertilization. Then, in October 2017, the Department of Health and Human Services releasedits draft strategicplan, which identifies a core policy of protectingAmericans at every stage of life, beginning at conception. While often touted as a means to outlaw abortion, protecting the "lives" of single-celled zygotes may also have implicationsfor the practice of reproductive medicine and research Indeedt such personhoodefforts stand apart anddistinct from more incre- mental attempts to restrictabortion that target the abortionprocedure and those who would perform it.
    [Show full text]
  • Safety of Abortion Abortions Provided Before 13 Weeks Are Quite Surgical Abortion Is One of the Safest Types of Unusual
    cant advances in medical technology and greater access to high-quality services.3 Gener- ally, the earlier the abortion, the less compli- cated and safer it is. Serious complications arising from aspiration Safety of Abortion abortions provided before 13 weeks are quite Surgical abortion is one of the safest types of unusual. About 88% of the women who ob- medical procedures. Complications from hav- tain abortions are less than 13 weeks preg- ing a first-trimester aspiration abortion are nant.4 Of these women, 97% report no com- considerably less frequent and less serious than plications; 2.5% have minor complications those associated with giving birth. Early that can be handled at the medical office or medical abortion (using medications to end a abortion facility; and less than 0.5% have more 1 pregnancy) has a similar safety profile. serious complications that require some addi- Illegal Abortion is Unsafe Abortion tional surgical procedure and/or hospitaliza- tion.5 Abortion has not always been so safe. Between the 1880s and 1973, abortion was illegal in all Early medical abortions are limited to the first or most U.S. states, and many women died or 9 weeks of pregnancy. Medical abortions have had serious medical problems as a result. an excellent safety profile, with serious com- 6 Women often made desperate and dangerous plications occurring in less than 0.5% of cases. attempts to induce their own abortions or re- Over the last five years, six women in North sorted to untrained practitioners who per- America have died as a result of toxic shock formed abortions with primitive instruments secondary to a rare bacterial infection of the or in unsanitary conditions.
    [Show full text]
  • A CASE for LEGAL ABORTION WATCH the Human Cost of Barriers to Sexual and Reproductive Rights in Argentina
    HUMAN RIGHTS A CASE FOR LEGAL ABORTION WATCH The Human Cost of Barriers to Sexual and Reproductive Rights in Argentina A Case for Legal Abortion The Human Cost of Barriers to Sexual and Reproductive Rights in Argentina Copyright © 2020 Human Rights Watch All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America ISBN: 978-1-62313-8462 Cover design by Rafael Jimenez Human Rights Watch defends the rights of people worldwide. We scrupulously investigate abuses, expose the facts widely, and pressure those with power to respect rights and secure justice. Human Rights Watch is an independent, international organization that works as part of a vibrant movement to uphold human dignity and advance the cause of human rights for all. Human Rights Watch is an international organization with staff in more than 40 countries, and offices in Amsterdam, Beirut, Berlin, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Goma, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Nairobi, New York, Paris, San Francisco, Sydney, Tokyo, Toronto, Tunis, Washington DC, and Zurich. For more information, please visit our website: http://www.hrw.org AUGUST 2020 ISBN: 978-1-62313-8462 A Case for Legal Abortion The Human Cost of Barriers to Sexual and Reproductive Rights in Argentina Summary ......................................................................................................................... 1 Recommendations ........................................................................................................... 8 To the President of Argentina: .................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • THE GLOBAL GAG RULE the Unintended Consequences of US Abortion Policy Abroad by Emily Ausubel
    THE GLOBAL GAG RULE The Unintended Consequences of US Abortion Policy Abroad By Emily Ausubel Emily Ausubel is a frst-year Master in Public Policy candidate at the Harvard Kennedy School concentrating in International and Global Afairs. Before coming to HKS, Emily worked at global health organizations in the US and Uganda. Emily is passionate about advancing women’s health and preventing sexual and gender- based violence. pproximately 55 million abortions take A HISTORY OF US FOREIGN POLICY A place each year globally.1 In the United TOWARD ABORTION States, abortion is a deeply contentious In 1973, Congress passed the Helms issue, occupying a rift between religious and Amendment to the US Foreign Assistance Act, non-religious—and, often by proxy, conser- which prohibited direct US federal funding of vative and liberal—Americans. In the 1970s, abortion services outside of the United States. the US government started passing legisla- Under this policy, such organizations could tion to remove US funding from abortion-re- use other funds for abortion services through lated services, both domestically and globally. separate accounts.2 However, many pro-life While some policies have likely succeeded in Americans argued that even funding these eliminating direct US funding of abortions organizations to provide other services was abroad, there is mounting evidence that they comparable to funding abortion (sometimes also have widespread negative effects on the referred to as the “fungibility argument”).3 In lives of some of the most vulnerable
    [Show full text]
  • Mifepristone
    1. NAME OF THE MEDICINAL PRODUCT Mifegyne 200 mg tablets 2. QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE COMPOSITION Each tablet contains 200-mg mifepristone. For the full list of excipients, see section 6.1 3. PHARMACEUTICAL FORM Tablet. Light yellow, cylindrical, bi-convex tablets, with a diameter of 11 mm with “167 B” engraved on one side. 4. CLINICAL PARTICULARS For termination of pregnancy, the anti-progesterone mifepristone and the prostaglandin analogue can only be prescribed and administered in accordance with New Zealand’s abortion laws and regulations. 4.1 Therapeutic indications 1- Medical termination of developing intra-uterine pregnancy. In sequential use with a prostaglandin analogue, up to 63 days of amenorrhea (see section 4.2). 2- Softening and dilatation of the cervix uteri prior to surgical termination of pregnancy during the first trimester. 3- Preparation for the action of prostaglandin analogues in the termination of pregnancy for medical reasons (beyond the first trimester). 4- Labour induction in fetal death in utero. In patients where prostaglandin or oxytocin cannot be used. 4.2 Dose and Method of Administration Dose 1- Medical termination of developing intra-uterine pregnancy The method of administration will be as follows: • Up to 49 days of amenorrhea: 1 Mifepristone is taken as a single 600 mg (i.e. 3 tablets of 200 mg each) oral dose, followed 36 to 48 hours later, by the administration of the prostaglandin analogue: misoprostol 400 µg orally or per vaginum. • Between 50-63 days of amenorrhea Mifepristone is taken as a single 600 mg (i.e. 3 tablets of 200 mg each) oral dose, followed 36 to 48 hours later, by the administration of misoprostol.
    [Show full text]
  • Recent Abortion Law Reforms (Or Much Ado About Nothing) Harvey L
    Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology Volume 60 | Issue 1 Article 2 1969 Recent Abortion Law Reforms (Or Much Ado About Nothing) Harvey L. Ziff Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/jclc Part of the Criminal Law Commons, Criminology Commons, and the Criminology and Criminal Justice Commons Recommended Citation Harvey L. Ziff, Recent Abortion Law Reforms (Or Much Ado About Nothing), 60 J. Crim. L. Criminology & Police Sci. 3 (1969) This Article is brought to you for free and open access by Northwestern University School of Law Scholarly Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology by an authorized editor of Northwestern University School of Law Scholarly Commons. THE JounN.e., or CatnaA, LAw, CRIMnOLOGY AND POLICE SCIENCE Vol. 60, No. 1 Copyright @ 1969 by Northwestern University School of Law Pri ed in U.S.A. RECENT ABORTION LAW REFORMS (OR MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING) HARVEY L. ZIFF The author is a graduate of Northwestern University School of Law's two-year Prosecution-Defense Graduate Student Program. He received his LL.M. degree in June, 1969, after completing one year in residence and one year in the field as an Assistant United States Attorney in San Francisco, Califor- nia. The present article was prepared in satisfaction of the graduate thesis requirement. (It repre- sents the author's own views and in no way reflects the attitude of the Office of United States Attorney.) Mr. Ziff received his B.S. degree in Economics from the Wharton School of Finance of the Univer- sity of Pennsylvania in 1964.
    [Show full text]
  • Abortion Laws and Women's Health
    DISCUSSION PAPER SERIES IZA DP No. 11890 Abortion Laws and Women’s Health Damian Clarke Hanna Mühlrad OCTOBER 2018 DISCUSSION PAPER SERIES IZA DP No. 11890 Abortion Laws and Women’s Health Damian Clarke Universidad de Santiago de Chile and IZA Hanna Mühlrad Lund University OCTOBER 2018 Any opinions expressed in this paper are those of the author(s) and not those of IZA. Research published in this series may include views on policy, but IZA takes no institutional policy positions. The IZA research network is committed to the IZA Guiding Principles of Research Integrity. The IZA Institute of Labor Economics is an independent economic research institute that conducts research in labor economics and offers evidence-based policy advice on labor market issues. Supported by the Deutsche Post Foundation, IZA runs the world’s largest network of economists, whose research aims to provide answers to the global labor market challenges of our time. Our key objective is to build bridges between academic research, policymakers and society. IZA Discussion Papers often represent preliminary work and are circulated to encourage discussion. Citation of such a paper should account for its provisional character. A revised version may be available directly from the author. IZA – Institute of Labor Economics Schaumburg-Lippe-Straße 5–9 Phone: +49-228-3894-0 53113 Bonn, Germany Email: [email protected] www.iza.org IZA DP No. 11890 OCTOBER 2018 ABSTRACT Abortion Laws and Women’s Health* We examine the impact of progressive and regressive abortion legislation on women’s health and survival in Mexico. Following a 2007 reform in the Federal District of Mexico which decriminalised and subsidised early-term elective abortion, multiple other Mexican states increased sanctions on illegal abortion.
    [Show full text]
  • Unsafe Abortion in Brazil: a Systematic Review of the Scientific Production, 2008-2018 Aborto Inseguro No Brasil
    REVISÃO REVIEW Aborto inseguro no Brasil: revisão sistemática da produção científica, 2008-2018 Unsafe abortion in Brazil: a systematic review of the scientific production, 2008-2018 Aborto inseguro en Brasil: revisión sistemática de la producción científica, 2008-2018 Rosa Maria Soares Madeira Domingues 1 Sandra Costa Fonseca 2 Maria do Carmo Leal 3 Estela M. L. Aquino 4 Greice M. S. Menezes 4 doi: 10.1590/0102-311X00190418 Resumo Correspondência R. M. S. M. Domingues Instituto Nacional de Infectologia Evandro Chagas, Fundação O objetivo deste estudo é atualizar o conhecimento sobre o aborto inseguro Oswaldo Cruz. no país. Foi realizada uma revisão sistemática com busca e seleção de estudos Av. Brasil 4365, Rio de Janeiro, RJ 21040-360, Brasil. via MEDLINE e LILACS, sem restrição de idiomas, no período 2008 a 2018, [email protected] com avaliação da qualidade dos artigos por meio dos instrumentos elaborados 1 pelo Instituto Joanna Briggs. Foram avaliados 50 artigos. A prevalência de Instituto Nacional de Infectologia Evandro Chagas, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil. aborto induzido no Brasil foi estimada por método direto em 15% no ano de 2 Instituto de Saúde Coletiva, Universidade Federal Fluminense, 2010 e 13% no ano de 2016. Prevalências mais elevadas foram observadas Rio de Janeiro, Brasil. em populações socialmente mais vulneráveis. A razão de aborto induzido por 3 Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública Sergio Arouca, Fundação 1.000 mulheres em idade fértil reduziu no período 1995-2013, sendo de 16 por Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil. 4 Instituto de Saúde Coletiva, Universidade Federal da Bahia, 1.000 em 2013.
    [Show full text]
  • Herbal Abortifacients and Their Classical Heritage in Tudor England
    Penn History Review Volume 20 Issue 1 Spring 2013 Article 3 December 2013 Herbal Abortifacients and their Classical Heritage in Tudor England Alex Gradwohl University of Pennsylvania, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.upenn.edu/phr Recommended Citation Gradwohl, Alex (2013) "Herbal Abortifacients and their Classical Heritage in Tudor England," Penn History Review: Vol. 20 : Iss. 1 , Article 3. Available at: https://repository.upenn.edu/phr/vol20/iss1/3 This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. https://repository.upenn.edu/phr/vol20/iss1/3 For more information, please contact [email protected]. Herbal Abortifacients H#%1.0 A1'%$+&.2+#-$, .-* $)#+% C0.,,+2.0 H#%+$.3# +- T4*'% E-30.-*: Alex Gradwohl Although birth control is often considered to be a modern innovation, various forms of homeopathic anti-fertility measures have been in use since ancient times. Discussed at length by the great Greco-Roman medical authorities, certain herbs have long been utilized for their abortion-inducing properties. Centuries later, the extensive herbal guides and other medical texts of Tudor England seem to largely ignore the subject of anti-fertility herbs. Despite this apparent silence, however, classical knowledge of herbal abortifacients did not GLVDSSHDULQVL[WHHQWKFHQWXU\(QJODQG,QÁXHQFHGE\FKDQJLQJ attitudes and social acceptability concerning abortion, English medical and herbal writers included disguised information about certain herbs’ potential abortive uses, providing Tudor women with an important means to control their fertility.1 It is easy to overlook the inclusion of abortifacients when examining Tudor medical and herbal sources since they generally do not overtly reference or explain the uses of these herbs.
    [Show full text]
  • Similarities in the Impact of Abortion's Illegality on Women's Health
    Advocacy for Access to Safe Legal Abortion: Similarities in the Impact of Abortion’s Illegality on Women’s Health and Health Care in PERNAMBUCO, BAHIA, MATO GROSSO DO SUL, PARAIBA, and RIO DE JANEIRO March 2011 CREDITS: Authors: Gilberta S. Soares, Maria Beatriz Galli, Ana Paula de A.L. Viana PROJECT DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION Maria Beatriz Galli (Ipas Brazil) and Ana Paula de A.L. Viana (Grupo Curumim) – General Coordination Mário Monteiro (IMS/UERJ) – Consultancy for quantitative data analysis Acknowledgments: Leila Adesse (Ipas Brazil), Gillian Kane, and Charlotte Hord Smith (Ipas) PERNAMBUCO Authors: Maria Beatriz Galli, Mario F.G. Monteiro, Ana Paula de A.L. Viana, Núbia Melo Project Team Paula Viana (Grupo Curumim) – Local Coordination Núbia Melo – Research and Methodology Advisor Kauara Rodrigues (CFEMEA) – Parliamentary Advisor Nataly Queiroz (Grupo Curumim) – Communications Advisor Mário Monteiro (IMS/UERJ) – Quantitative data analysis Alessandra Foelkel (Ipas Brazil) – Design and layout PARAIBA Authors: Socorro Borges, Cristina Lima, and Gilberta S. Soares Project Team Lucia Lira (Cunhã – Coletivo Feminista) – Local Coordination Socorro Borges – Research and Methodology Advisor Adriana Pereira dos Santos – Research Assistant Mário Monteiro (IMS/UERJ) – Quantitative data analysis Nataly Queiroz (Grupo Curumim) – Communications Advisor Cristina Lima, Jô Vital, and Iayna Rabay (Cunhã – Coletivo Feminista) – Communications Advisors Alessandra Foelkel (Ipas Brazil) – Design and layout BAHIA Authors: Cecilia Simonetti, Maria Helena
    [Show full text]
  • Unsafe Abortion Incidence and Mortality Global and Regional Levels in 2008 and Trends During 1990 –2008
    Unsafe abortion incidence and mortality Global and regional levels in 2008 and trends during 1990 –2008 Information sheet Information Unsafe abortion is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as Information sheet Information a procedure for terminating an unintended pregnancy carried out either by persons lacking the necessary skills or in an environment that does not conform to minimal medical standards, or both.1 When women want to limit or postpone childbearing, but contraception is not used or used ineffectively or they are forced into nonconsensual sex, unintended pregnancies occur: some are terminated by induced abortions while others result in unwanted births. Where abortion laws are restricted or safe abortion services are not widely accessible or are of poor quality, women resort to unskilled providers, risking serious consequences to their health and well-being. It is estimated that of the 210 million pregnancies that occur each year,2 some 80 million are unintended. In 2008, 21.6 million unsafe abortions were estimated to have occurred, causing the deaths of 47 000 women.3 Deaths due to unsafe abortion are mainly caused by severe infections or bleeding resulting from the unsafe abortion procedure, or due to organ damage. Incidence of unsafe abortion in 2008 (Table 1) • Worldwide 1 in 10 pregnancies end in an unsafe abortion. • There were 14 unsafe abortions per 1000 women aged 15–44 years worldwide. • Almost all unsafe abortions take place in developing countries. • The unsafe abortion rate per 1000 women aged 15–44 years in developing countries was 16, and in the least developed countries it was 27.
    [Show full text]