Equipoise: Ethical Considerations for Pregnancy Options Counseling

Abstract

Pregnancy options counseling is an intervention that supports individuals who are struggling with making decisions related to an unintended pregnancy and typically occurs within medical and social service agencies across the United States. This intervention is important, as nearly 50% of pregnancies in the United States are unplanned or unintended. While little information is presently available on how pregnancy options counseling is practiced across settings, there are likely many opportunities where ethical dilemmas arise for the counselor. This paper will introduce pregnancy options counseling within medical and social service settings and identify ethical considerations for social workers and other helping professionals. The paper ends with a focus specifically on equipoise as a state of being. Keywords: Pregnancy options counseling; unplanned pregnancy; social work ethics; social work in health care; clinical social work; reproductive decision making