... current laws repealed - Botched jobs put strain on public purse
January 15, 2008
Due in large part to an alarming number of botched abortions taking place in the island, a Ministry of Health-commissioned report has recommended that current laws prohibiting the practice be repealed and replaced with legislation outlining conditions under which medical termination of pregnancy would be lawful.
A report to be tabled in Parliament by the Abortion Policy Review Advisory Group has revealed that botched abortions are burdening the public health sector as many women who suffer from the complications that arise after the bungled operations are unable to pay for the costly treatment they receive.
Hundreds seen in hospital
The investigation carried out by the advisory group revealed that, during a six-month period, hundreds of patients suffering from problems that resulted from slipshod abortions were admitted to a ward at one of the nation's premier public hospitals that deals exclusively with such medical emergencies.
At the hospital in question, admissions to one of its wards which deals exclusively with abortions and their complications, numbered 641 patients between March 1 and August 31, 2005 - a period of six months - the report revealed.
A draft of the advisory group's final report said all the patients at that hospital had inner-city addresses.
Mainly poor, young patients
Additionally, the advisory group pointed out that most of the patients admitted to the ward were "young, poor, unemployed and live in economically and socially deprived communities".
Despite, their bleak social and economic circumstances, the young women appeared quite knowledgeable about the abortion process, the group theorised.
"They are sufficiently well-informed to intervene in their pregnancies early, that is, before 12 weeks, and to choose to access a medically induced method, albeit on the black market," the report said.
While the figures give an indication of the number of illegal abortions being performed, the advisory group admitted that obtaining accurate statistics regarding the prevalence of the controversial practice and its resultant complications is difficult.
The difficulty, the group argued, is largely due to the country's restrictive and punitive laws that lead to people developing a tendency to conceal facts and veil intentions which could be considered illegal.
"As far as we can ascertain, the complications of unsafe abortions constitute the eighth leading cause of maternal deaths in Jamaica and the second in the adolescent age group." ...
Author: Tyrone Reid
Source: Jamaica Gleaner
