Abortion and reproductive health should be counted as "essential services" during the pandemic, says WHO
TIMESOFINDIA.COM | Apr 13, 2020, 12.00 PM IST
![Abortion and reproductive health should be counted as "essential services" during the pandemic, says WHO Abortion and reproductive health should be counted as "essential services" during the pandemic, says WHO](/https/timesofindia.indiatimes.com/thumb/msid-75117017,width-400,resizemode-4/75117017.jpg)
Coronavirus is an unprecedented calamity which nobody was prepared for. With strict lockdown orders and many frontline workers forced to attend to dire urgencies, many other medical services, procedures, including surgeries have been largely listed "non-essential" right now. Keeping in mind the virus scare in medical centres, many are also avoiding or postponing visiting doctors or clinics to limit infection risk.
As helpful as that sounds, the orders have also made many women worldwide take difficult decisions surrounding their pregnancies, especially the unplanned ones. Lockdowns have forced them to reconsider matters concerning their reproductive health, including abortions. Many states, including in the USA have closed down on abortion clinics, terming them to be non-essential.
In what may be considered as welcome news, the World Health Organisation (WHO), in its latest briefing urged governments across nations to treat women's reproductive health as an essential healthcare service and make sure their needs are being attended to, in all forms, including abortion.
The leading health body also published guidelines in March, stating that sexual and reproductive health should be regarded 'essential' irrespective of the state of the pandemic in any country and women, in particular, should be allowed to have options regarding safe access to contraception and abortion.
Not only is this hailed as a win for women's rights, but this will also help millions of women be in a better place to take care of their health, during such times.
Here's why this is needed
Getting an abortion or ending a pregnancy should be every woman's right. However, abortions are usually met with a lot of judgement and contempt, which can make it a lot harder for a woman. Plus, having zero access to family planning services in the early months (which is the safest) risks the mother's health and can have dire consequences. Hence, it's primitive that reproductive health be added to the list of essential services.
A latest study quotes that over 9.5 million women would be denied access to right family planning services this year due to the pandemic, if laws aren't changed. This would further lead to over 3 million unplanned pregnancies, increasing pressure on country's resources. In the abscense of ethical options, such a move can also lead to a rise in unethical or unsafe abortions, especially in developing countries, which is not just risky but also accounts for sizeable maternal deaths. Globally, unsafe abortions lead to 4-13% of maternal deaths every year, which is a staggering number.
Court allows woman to abort 'abnormal' foetus at 26 weeks; not a crime anymore
Not getting care in the crucial months of pregnancy, or having no access to terminate a pregnancy also puts mental well-being at risk.
Medically, abortions are considered to be the safest and the easiest when conducted in the first trimester. Late term abortions are legally, not allowed in many places and considered on a case to case basis, depending on the situation. Done in the first trimester, it cuts down the risk and ends it safely. The longer women have to wait, the more the procedure can get complex.
As helpful as that sounds, the orders have also made many women worldwide take difficult decisions surrounding their pregnancies, especially the unplanned ones. Lockdowns have forced them to reconsider matters concerning their reproductive health, including abortions. Many states, including in the USA have closed down on abortion clinics, terming them to be non-essential.
In what may be considered as welcome news, the World Health Organisation (WHO), in its latest briefing urged governments across nations to treat women's reproductive health as an essential healthcare service and make sure their needs are being attended to, in all forms, including abortion.
The leading health body also published guidelines in March, stating that sexual and reproductive health should be regarded 'essential' irrespective of the state of the pandemic in any country and women, in particular, should be allowed to have options regarding safe access to contraception and abortion.
Not only is this hailed as a win for women's rights, but this will also help millions of women be in a better place to take care of their health, during such times.
Here's why this is needed
Getting an abortion or ending a pregnancy should be every woman's right. However, abortions are usually met with a lot of judgement and contempt, which can make it a lot harder for a woman. Plus, having zero access to family planning services in the early months (which is the safest) risks the mother's health and can have dire consequences. Hence, it's primitive that reproductive health be added to the list of essential services.
A latest study quotes that over 9.5 million women would be denied access to right family planning services this year due to the pandemic, if laws aren't changed. This would further lead to over 3 million unplanned pregnancies, increasing pressure on country's resources. In the abscense of ethical options, such a move can also lead to a rise in unethical or unsafe abortions, especially in developing countries, which is not just risky but also accounts for sizeable maternal deaths. Globally, unsafe abortions lead to 4-13% of maternal deaths every year, which is a staggering number.
Court allows woman to abort 'abnormal' foetus at 26 weeks; not a crime anymore
Not getting care in the crucial months of pregnancy, or having no access to terminate a pregnancy also puts mental well-being at risk.
Medically, abortions are considered to be the safest and the easiest when conducted in the first trimester. Late term abortions are legally, not allowed in many places and considered on a case to case basis, depending on the situation. Done in the first trimester, it cuts down the risk and ends it safely. The longer women have to wait, the more the procedure can get complex.