Psychiatric experience of the Abortion Act (1967).

Abstract

Public controversy surrounds the workings of the Abortion Act and will no doubt continue to do so, probably until such time as surgical operation is replaced by other methods. Recently the report has been published of the enquiry by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists which emphasises the difficulties involved in interpretation of the Act and the variations encountered in practice. There is a substantial body of psychiatric literature on the subject, e.g., Ekblad, 1955; Arkle, 1957; Kummer, 1963; Sim, 1963; Höök, 1963; Baird, 1967; Clark et al., 1968 and Kenyon, 1969, but results obtained in other countries and in this country some years ago are not necessarily applicable to this country now, since changes in public attitudes are likely to influence them. Little has been published by psychiatrists about their experience with cases since the Act came into operation. The recent follow-up series of Pare and Raven deals with cases seen in the years 1962 to 1968, i.e., mainly before the implementation of the Act.