When patients change their minds after starting an abortion: Guidance from the National Abortion Federation’s Clinical Policies Committee

Abstract

The number of people who wish to stop an abortion once it has started is low. There is little evidence-based guidance for clinicians about how to help those few patients who may want to stop an abortion procedure once it has started. This National Abortion Federation Clinical Policies Committee guidance discusses certainty around abortion decision making, the frequency with which patients wish to interrupt an abortion procedure once it has started, pregnancy outcomes, and clinical guidance for practitioners should this unlikely event occur. Counseling and clinical care should be evidence-based and patient-centered and based on the patient's goals and the medications or treatments they have already received.