Abortion Experience Research Articles

Telling stories about abortion: abortion-related plots in American film and television, 1916–2013

ObjectivesPopular discourse on abortion in film and television assumes that abortions are under- and misrepresented. Research indicates that such representations influence public perception of abortion care and may play a role in the production of social myths around abortion, with consequences for women’s experience of abortion. To date, abortion plotlines in American film and television have not been systematically tracked and analyzed. Study designA comprehensive online search was conducted to identify all representations of pregnancy decision making and abortion in American film and television through January 2013. Search results were coded for year, pregnancy decision and mortality outcome. ResultsA total of 310 plotlines were identified, with an overall upward trend over time in the number of representations of abortion decision making. Of these plotlines, 173 (55.8%) resulted in abortion, 80 (25.8%) in parenting, 13 (4.2%) in adoption and 21 (6.7%) in pregnancy loss, and 16 (5.1%) were unresolved. A total of 13.5% (n=42) of stories ended with the death of the woman who considered an abortion, whether or not she obtained one. ConclusionsAbortion-related plotlines occur more frequently than popular discourse assumes. Year-to-year variation in frequency suggests an interactive relationship between media representations, cultural attitudes and policies around abortion regulation, consistent with cultural theory of the relationship between media products and social beliefs. Patterns of outcomes and rates of mortality are not representative of real experience and may contribute to social myths around abortion. The narrative linking of pregnancy termination with mortality is of particular note, supporting the social myth associating abortion with death. ImplicationsThis analysis empirically describes the number of abortion-related plotlines in American film and television. It contributes to the systematic evaluation of the portrayal of abortion in popular culture and provides abortion care professionals and advocates with an initial accurate window into cultural stories being told about abortion.

Competences acquired during medical training and the opinions and attitudes about abortion

To analyze and compare the knowledge, attitudes and opinions of medical students about abortion in Brazil during the progression of the course. This was a cross-sectional study involving 174 medical students. A questionnaire was applied whose dependent variables were degree of information about abortion, including its legal aspects in Brazil, situations in which the students would agree with the expansion of permitted legal abortion, knowledge of someone undergoing abortion, and discomfort about performing the procedure legally. The independent variables were sociodemographic data, religion, and academic standing (first or second half of the course). For data analysis it was used χ2 and Fisher's exact tests, with the level of significance set at 5%. Among the interviewees, 59.8 % considered themselves well informed about the topic. Students demonstrated knowledge about the complications of abortion, with no differences with the progression of the course. Knowledge about the legal aspects of abortion in Brazil was shown by 48.9% of the sample, being significantly higher among students in the second half of the course (34.0 and 68.9%, respectively; p<0.001). Experiencing situations of clandestine abortion was significantly higher among students in the final half of the course (3.05 and 59.4%, respectively; p<0.001), the same being observed about knowing someone who underwent the procedure illegally (5.0 and 18.9%, respectively; p<0.001). The expansion of permissive legal abortion in Brazil was agreed about by 86.2% students, although 54.6% of the students reported that they felt uncomfortable about performing the procedure even legally, without statistical significance with the evolution of the course regarding the two situations. The experiences of abortion and the knowledge of legal aspects were significantly higher among students in the second half of the course, with no significant changes in attitudes or opinions about abortion being observed with the competences acquired during medical training.

Aborted Emotions: Regret, Relationality, and Regulation

Regret is a deeply contested emotion within abortion discourse. It is present in ways that we are both afraid of and afraid to talk about. Conventional pro-life and pro-choice narratives link regret to defective decision making. Both sides assert that the existence of regret reveals abortion’s harmfulness or harmlessness, generating a narrow focus on the maternal-fetal relationship and women’s “rights.” These incomplete, deeply flawed constructions mire discourse in a clash between regret and relief and exclude myriad relevant relationships. Moreover, they distort popular understandings of abortion that in turn influence women, creating cognitive dissonance and perhaps distress for those with different lived experiences of abortion. Finally, these portrayals contribute to the silence and stigma surrounding abortion. This Article contends that regret is more suggestive of women’s deep reflection on the abortion decision and respect for the fetal relationship than of flawed decision making—signifying autonomy, not victimization. It explains why we view regret as an outcome of deficient decision making, how this conception misrepresents regret and confuses it with remorse, and why it prompts liberals and conservatives alike to devalue women’s autonomy. This Article charts a course for reconceptualizing and ultimately decentering regret by discussing several common missteps in current constructions: (1) conflating regret with psychopathology, (2) confusing regret with remorse, (3) confining regret to the maternal-fetal relationship and women’s self-commitment, (4) linking regret to deficient decision making, and (5) coupling regret and moral culpability. Finally, this Article discusses how correcting these errors reprioritizes autonomy and profoundly impacts abortion regulation.

An Explanatory Model to Guide Assessment, Risk and Diagnosis of Psychological Distress after Abortion

Background: Emerging data report 30% of women worldwide who obtain elective abortion experience negative and persistent psychological distress afterward. Studies find higher rates of psychological stress, depressive, substance, and anxiety disorders as well as suicidal behaviors, among some populations after abortion as compared to other reproductive events. Of concern, is that currenttheory and practice which promote abortion to relieve the stress of an unwanted pregnancy do not reflect new evidence. Moreover, the controversy on abortion inhibits research and treatment on its impact on women’s mental health. Thus, clinicians do not identify adverse psychological outcomes to abortion leaving many women untreated. Indeed, this knowledge-practice gap among healthcare providers may be the major reason that the incidence of adverse psychological outcomes after abortion continues to rise. Method: This paper proposes a theoretical understanding of psychological distress after abortion based on new data. A bio-psychosocial framework, including a psychological and biological theory, as well as a conceptual model is presented to explain the development of psychological distress after abortion. A comparison of risk factors between postpartum and post-abortion disorders is presented. Conclusion: A new theoretical model of psychological distress after abortion deepens understanding of the range of women’s responses to abortion and promotes evidence based practice. A scientific framework provides a much needed understanding of abortion aftermath as opposed to a political one. By providing assistance to clinicians in the identification, screening, and treatment of psychological disorders after abortion, this thesis aims to close the practice gap, and increase services after abortion to women who need them.

Prevalence and Risk Factors of Intimate Partner Violence Among Pregnant Women in Japan

Intimate partner violence (IPV) during pregnancy can result in adverse outcomes for both mothers and their infants. This cross-sectional study examined the prevalence and risk factors of IPV associated with abuse during pregnancy via a self-administered questionnaire completed by 302 healthy pregnant women. Demographic information was also collected from medical records to analyze risk factors for abuse. Of the 302 women, 48 (15.9%) were identified as experiencing IPV. The identified risk factors were age over 30, multipara, previous abortion experience, and male partner aged under 30.

Understanding the Pregnancy Decision-Making Process Among Couples Seeking Induced Abortion

ObjectiveThe role of partners in the abortion experience is complex and poorly understood. We sought to examine how women and their partners navigate the pregnancy decision-making process. MethodsThirty couples presenting for abortion completed questionnaires exploring experiences leading to the abortion. Participants were sequestered from their partners during completion of the study, and booklets were coded to allow comparison within couples. This portion of the study explored partner involvement in the decision-making process. ResultsOne half of women had decided on abortion before informing their partner of the pregnancy. Of those who were undecided at the time of disclosure, all sought their partner’s advice. Most participants (84%) were happy with the amount of discussion that took place with their partners, although one fifth of women and nearly one third of men could have discussed it more. More women than men were happy with the discussions that took place (96.6% vs. 70.4%). Two thirds of respondents viewed the decision to have an abortion as being made by both partners, one quarter viewed the decision as being mostly the woman’s choice, and 5% viewed the decision as being mostly the male partner’s choice. ConclusionAlthough making the choice to have an abortion rests with the woman, her partner may play a role in the decision-making process, particularly when the woman is undecided. For many couples presenting for abortion, the decision is seen as being made jointly by both partners. Further research may identify opportunities to foster greater partner support throughout a woman’s abortion experience.

The transition to nonparenthood: A critical feminist autoethnographic approach to understanding the abortion experience

A critical feminist autoethnography is used to illuminate the struggles associated with the elective abortion decision and offer insight into, and understanding and knowledge of the physical and emotional experience of the procedure, as well as the institutions associated with abortion. Framing the abortion experience in this way qualitatively synthesizes feminist perspectives, symbolic interactionism, and narrative to create a combined theoretical, analytical, and methodological approach.

Documenting women’s abortion experiences in Ontario

Although Canada decriminalized abortion more than 20 years ago, there continue to be significant disparities in access to services, and the geographic distribution of providers is uneven. Through in-depth, open-ended interviews with 60 Anglophone women in five areas of Ontario, this study aimed to (1) document women's experiences obtaining abortion care; (2) identify the financial and personal costs associated with obtaining abortion services; and (3) explore women's perceptions as to how access to services could be improved.

Abortion and Breast Cancer: Case-Control Study

The aim of the present study was to examine if certain aspects of a woman's experience of abortion might be associated with the risk of breast cancer. The case-control study was conducted in Kragujevac (Serbia) during the period 2004-2005. The case group (191 women) consisted of patients with newly diagnosed first primary breast cancer, which was histologically confirmed. The control group (191 women), individually matched by age (± 2 years), hospital admittance and place of residence (rural/urban) to the respective cases, was selected from female patients admitted for other diseases. The analysis was restricted to parous women (168 cases and 171 controls). Breast cancer risk was reduced among women who had a history of any abortion (adjusted OR, 0.46; 95% CI, 0.24-0.88). The protective effect was found for both induced abortion (adjusted OR, 0.47; 95% CI, 0.25-0.90) and spontaneous abortion (adjusted OR, 0.31; 95% CI, 0.10-0.98). It seems that these associations did not depend on the number of abortions, age at first abortion, or gestational age at first aborted pregnancy. Our study suggests that even short pregnancies ending in abortion add to the protection against breast cancer.

Cohort Abortion Measures for the United States.

Demographers interested in abortion in the United States have thus far focused on cross‐sectional and synthetic cohort measures, reflecting data availability. We now have cohorts that have completed their entire reproductive years after the Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion nationwide. For women who are still in their childbearing years at the conclusion of data collection, I apply the Lee‐Carter forecasting technique—its first application in abortion research—to project their completed age‐specific abortion rates. Using true cohort measures reveals markedly different abortion experiences by cohort; in particular, a significant declining trend. I find stability in the distribution of abortion by abortion order and the racial composition of abortion incidences. In addition to the substantive findings, cohort measures shift the focus of quantitative abortion research from incidence rates to women's lives over their reproductive years.

Body and embodiment in the experience of abortion for Mexican women: the sexual body, the fertile body, and the body of abortion

Body and embodiment in the experience of abortion for Mexican women: the sexual body, the fertile body, and the body of abortion

Kurdish womens stories of abortion in Sanandaj, Iran

Abortion is illegal in Iran, yet women go through the risks for various reasons. The purpose of this study was to explore the reasons why Kurdish women wanted to terminate their pregnancies, the methods used to induce the abortions, and their experience after abortion. The methodology for this study used a descriptive qualitative design. Five women with history of at least one induced abortion were interviewed in-depth for their abortion experiences. Reasons reported for induced abortions included financial problems, fear of people’s views and pressure from the husband. Abortion methods included the use of prostaglandin and dilation and curettage. Post abortion effects were both physical (including pain and bleeding) and emotional (mainly guilt and regret). Findings from this study suggest that midwives must take responsibility of effectively counselling women both before and after induced abortions, which may be performed for a variety of reasons. Health care professionals need to provide couples with guidance for appropriate contraceptive usage. Abortion after-care for women with physical and emotional needs is also crucial. Key words: Qualitative research, induced abortion, post-abortion experience.

Predictors of Reducing Sexual and Reproductive Risk Behaviors Based on the Information-Motivation-Behavioral Skills (IMB) Model among Unmarried Rural-To-Urban Female Migrants in Shanghai, China

BackgroundDue to the increase of premarital sex and the lack of reproductive health services, unmarried rural-to-urban female migrants experience more risks of sex and reproductive health (SRH). This study was designed to describe SRH related knowledge, attitude and risk behaviors among unmarried rural-to-urban female migrants and examine the predictors of reducing sexual and reproductive risk behaviors based on information-motivation-behavioral skills (IMB) model and to describe the relationships between the constructs.MethodsWe conducted a cross-sectional study to assess SRH related information, motivation, behavioral skills and preventive behaviors among unmarried rural-to-urban female migrants in Shanghai, one of the largest importers of migrant laborers in China. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to assess the IMB model.ResultsA total of 944 subjects completed their questionnaires. The mean age was 21.2 years old (SD = 2.3; range 16 to 28). Over one-fourth of participants reported having had premarital sex (N = 261, 27.6%) and among whom 15.3% reported having had the experience of unintended pregnancy, 14.6% with the experience of abortion. The final IMB model provided acceptable fit to the data (CFI = 0.99, RMSEA = 0.034). Reducing sexual and reproductive risk behaviors was significantly predicted by SRH related information (β = 0.681, P<0.001) and behavioral skills(β = 0.239, P<0.001). Motivation (β = 0.479, P<0.001) was the significant indirect predictor of reducing sexual and reproductive risk behaviors mediated through behavioral skills.ConclusionsThe results highlight the importance and necessity of conducting reproductive health promotion among unmarried rural-to-urban female migrants in China. The IMB model could be used to predict reducing sexual and reproductive risk behaviors and it suggests future interventions should focus on improving SRH related information and behavioral skills.

Effects of early breastfeeding education on maintenance of breastfeeding practice: A prospective observational study

Background: Breast feeding is an ideal feeding type for most infants and mothers. We evaluated the effect of early breast-feeding and prenatal education of breast- feeding in maintenance of breast-feeding practice after delivery. Methods: Eighty two pregnant women who experienced vaginal delivery were recruited from the department of obstetrics and gynecology of a university hospital between January 2006 and October 2006. These differences among variables were determined using SPSS ver. 10.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). Follow-up telephone interviews were conducted 1 week and 4 weeks after delivery to check feeding method for baby and other complications. Results: We calculated the correlations among the pregnant women’s age, height, and weight, abortion experience, the newborn’s weight, and social factors using ANOVA. There was no statistically significant relationship between early breast-feeding and maintenance of breast-feeding practice. Conclusions: Antenatal and post- partum period education about breast-feeding is necessary for breast-feeding practice maintenance. Further studies in developing educational programs are needed.

From Shame towards an Ethics of Ambiguity

For Sartre, shame is not an ethical but an ontological experience. With this in mind, the article examines the philosophical connection between shame and ambiguity through analysis of the experiences of abortion and the Nazi Occupation. The article demonstrates how Beauvoir develops Sartre's ontological notion of shame into an ethical philosophy of ambiguity as a result of wartime experiences. It demonstrates how encounters with shame, abortion, ambiguity and Occupation life in Beauvoir's 1945 novel Le sang des autres elucidate and are developed by Sartre and Beauvoir's philosophies of shame and ambiguity. The paper proposes that Sartre's and Beauvoir's thought was shaped by living through the Nazi Occupation and reveals how the memory of wartime shame is activated in contemporary ethical dilemmas in later literary works of both writers.

Stigma, Abortion, and Disclosure—Findings from a Qualitative Study

This study qualitatively explores perceptions of women who have experienced abortion care. It explores women's journey through abortion from confirmation of pregnancy to post-abortion. The study seeks to understand the implications of these perceptions for policy and practice. A qualitative study involving in-depth semi-structured interviews with 17 women, aged between 22 and 57 years, who had undergone legal induced abortion in the UK when they were 16 years or older. Participants were not recruited under the age of 16 because of the ethical and legal complexities of interviewing minors. Additionally, 16 years was deemed to be the most appropriate age as this is the legal age of consent in the UK. Participants were recruited from 12 community contraception and sexual health clinics in two NHS trusts, one in England and one in Wales. Participant recruitment was set at a minimum of 12 and participants were recruited on a "first come first served basis" (i.e., the first 12 who contacted the researcher). The number of participants was raised to seventeen as this was the number deemed to be the most suitable for data saturation in this particular qualitative research. Women in this study understood abortion as highly taboo and a potentially personally stigmatizing event. These perceptions continued to affect disclosure to others, long after the abortion, and affected women's perceptions of the response of others, including society in general, significant others, and health professionals. Women's experiences of abortion may be influenced by perceived negative social attitudes. Health professionals and abortion service providers might combat the perceived isolation of women undergoing abortion by attending not only to clinical/technical aspects of the procedure but also to women's psychological/emotional sensitivities surrounding the event.

Acceptability of home use of mifepristone for medical abortion

BackgroundMost medical abortion protocols require women to take mifepristone in the doctor's office. We assessed the acceptability of home use of mifepristone among women and their providers. Study DesignIn this multicenter trial, eligible women requesting termination of early pregnancy (n=301) chose whether to take mifepristone in the office or at home. Data on safety, efficacy, acceptability and disability were collected. ResultsOne hundred thirty-nine women (46%) chose to take mifepristone at home, and 162 (54%) chose office administration. Ninety-five percent of home users said that they would take the mifepristone in the same place in the future. Home users were not more likely to call the doctor's office or make an unplanned visit, and providers would recommend home use again for 95% of patients who chose home use. ConclusionsHome administration of mifepristone was safe and acceptable to women and providers in our study. Women should be offered this choice to allow more flexibility, comfort and privacy in their abortion experiences.

Examining the Use of Safety, Confrontation, and Ambivalence in Six Depictions of Reproductive Women on the American Stage, 1997-2007: Staging "the Place" of Abortion (review)

Reviewed by: Examining the Use of Safety, Confrontation, and Ambivalence in Six Depictions of Reproductive Women on the American Stage, 1997-2007: Staging "the Place" of Abortion Lynn Deboeck Examining the Use of Safety, Confrontation, and Ambivalence in Six Depictions of Reproductive Women on the American Stage, 1997-2007: Staging "the Place" of Abortion. By Lisa Hagen. New York: Edwin Mellen Press, 2010. Cloth $149.95. 424 pages. The national response to Roe v. Wade and other milestones of the pro-life/pro-choice debate illustrate the issue of abortion as one full of dramatic crisis, and yet this issue has not largely been confronted on stage. Lisa Hagen's insightful work, Examining the Use of Safety, Confrontation, and Ambivalence in Six Depictions of Reproductive Women on the American Stage, 1997-2007, reveals important information about why and how abortion has remained in the margins of theatrical creation and what this does to hinder the realization of the female experience. She explains that "we want to hide abortion, but also to drag it to light, to face it with fascination and fear" (157). This observation introduces Hagen's argument that the further the abortion procedure is distanced from the stage, the further the audience is distanced from the reproductive woman's lived reality. Critical to this thesis is the assertion that the abortion procedure itself is the only experience shared by reproductive women who have chosen to terminate their pregnancies. Hagen uses this claim to support her central argument, and yet it shows itself to be problematic, given the plethora of reproductive experiences presented in the pieces chosen for this study. Hagen analyzes six contemporary plays, chosen partly because of their use of abortion as a key element to the plot. She effectively leads the reader from plays that distance the procedure to those that attempt to stage it. Hagen further justifies her selections by noting their contemporary scope (all were written between 1997 and 2007) and their traditional nature (Hagen defines these plays as traditional because none of these pieces were explicitly politically motivated or executed, and all were single-authored). Following an extended introduction, three core chapters center around specific themes: the relationship between abortion and issues of safety/ concealment, visibility/confrontation, and ambivalence. Hagen's approach is one that integrates textual analysis of plays with social and academic discourse around the topic of abortion. Her purpose is to present a model for viewing abortion that can be used to examine the many different areas of study that handle abortion— including those excluded from her study due to necessary limitations of scope. The first chapter analyzes plays that distance the characters and audience from the abortion procedure in order to, as Hagen suggests, protect the audience from the trauma of the reproductive woman's life. The women represented in the plays for this section are primigravidas (women experiencing their first pregnancy). By using this medical term, Hagen parallels the plays' distancing of the abortion experience from the protagonist. The distancing tactics used in these two plays include avoidance of the abortion procedure itself and displacement of focus away from the reproductive [End Page 140] woman. Keith Bunin's The Credeaux Canvas, for example, places emphasis on the reactions of the two male characters. Hagen successfully demonstrates how this conceals the true woman's experience by drawing the parallel to society's focus on the emotions and concerns of people other than the reproductive woman herself. In Elizabeth Heffron's Mitzi's Abortion, Hagen highlights how family, medical, and historical groups' perspectives are acknowledged more than the title character's. Chapter two uses protest to highlight the tensions between abortion and its representations on stage. As Hagen states: "Protest is inherently performative, therefore it contains a great deal of theatricality; the 'watched' aspect of protest along with its desire to communicate a message in the most memorable way possible makes it a mimic of theatre" (165). The two plays discussed in this chapter, Wendy MacLeod's The Water Children and Dominique Morisseau's Retrospect for Life, use protest to emphasize the sensationalism and politicization of abortion. Hagen skillfully shows how the inclusion in The Water Children of certain extremist...

Use of Medicines Changing the Face of Abortion

Medication abortion (also commonly referred to as medical abortion) is arguably the most important advance in reproductive health technology since the discovery of oral contraceptives. This simple process, involving the use of pins rather than invasive surgical instruments, has been shown to be safe and up to 98% effective for early pregnancy termination. (1-3) In settings where abortion is legal, medication abortion has expanded the array of effective options available, thus improving the abortion experience for those who wish to avoid surgery. In settings where abortion is illegal or highly restricted, it has provided many women for the first time with a safe and discreet means for early termination of unwanted pregnancy. Further, in all settings where it is available, medication abortion has reduced women's dependence on medical systems, providing them with greater autonomy and control over their most important reproductive decisions. Administration of mifepristone, followed by a prostaglandin, is the gold standard for medication abortion. Mifepristone was initially approved in the late 1980s in China and France and has since been safely and effectively used by many millions of women worldwide. (4-7) Mifepristone diminishes the biological availability of progesterone, the hormone needed to sustain pregnancy. It is typically used in combination with misoprostol, which helps empty the uterus by inducing uterine contractions. (1) However, mifepristone is not available in many settings because of legal restrictions on the provision of abortion services. It is also unavailable in numerous settings where the population of reproductive-age women is small, since the high cost of drug registration makes entering the market unappealing to commercial entities. As a result, mifepristone is registered for pregnancy termination in only about 50 of the world's countries, the majority of which are in the developed regions of Europe. (8) Of the 20 developing countries where mifepristone is registered, two-thirds are in Asia. At present, mifepristone is registered in just five African countries (Mozambique, Zambia, Tunisia, South Africa and Ghana) and two Latin American countries (Mexico and Guyana). In many settings where mifepristone is unavailable, misoprostol is commonly used alone for early pregnancy termination. Misoprostol was originally developed in the mid-1980s for gastrointestinal indications and is licensed for such purposes in about 90 countries worldwide. (9), (10) The drug is inexpensive and stable at room temperature, making it ideal for inducing abortion in low-resource settings. The first reported widespread use of misoprostol for pregnancy termination was in Brazil in the late 1980s. (11),(12) Since then, knowledge and use of misoprostol by itself as a means of early pregnancy termination have grown throughout Latin America, as well as in other regions where abortion is legally restricted and mifepristone is unavailable. (13), (14) Although use of misoprostol alone is less effective than its use with mifepristone, misoprostol-only abortions are nevertheless a safe, acceptable and effective means of early pregnancy termination. (6), (15), (16) In still other settings, women lack access to both misoprostol and mifepristone. These include much of northern and western Africa; some parts of middle, eastern and southern Africa; and a number of countries in Asia and South America. (10) Perhaps not surprisingly, some of the world's most restrictive abortion laws and highest rates of abortion-related mortality are found in these same places. (17), (18) The acceptability of medication abortion among women seeking an abortion is high in developing countries, regardless of the setting or regimen used. (5), (6), (19) Furthermore, demand for the procedure appears to be increasing rapidly in many places. It is difficult to document specific trends in the use of medication abortion, because mifepristone is frequently unavailable and use of misoprostol is largely off-label or clandestine. …

Autonomy and dependence – experiences of home abortion, contraception and prevention

Few studies have explored experiences and needs in relation to an induced medical abortion with the final treatment at home. To explore women's and men's experiences and needs related to care in the context of a home abortion as well as to elicit their views on contraception and prevention of unwanted pregnancies. Qualitative interviews were carried out with 24 women and 13 men who had experienced a home abortion; they took place in Sweden during 2009/10. Two overarching themes were identified: Autonomy--the decision to undergo an abortion and the choice of method were well considered by the woman, supported by the partner. The home environment increased their privacy and control, which helped them freely express and share their emotions. They were motivated to avoid a subsequent abortion and considered it an individual responsibility; however, contraceptive follow-up visits were rare. Dependence--a desire to be treated with empathy and respect by care providers and to receive adequate information. In the prevention of unwanted pregnancies, financial resources, improved communication/education and subsidized contraceptives were considered important. Home abortion increases autonomy, and women and partners demonstrate self-care ability. This autonomy, however, is related to dependence: a desire to be treated with empathy and respect on equal terms and to receive adequate information tailored to their self-care needs. Routines in abortion care should be continuously evaluated to ensure care satisfaction, safety and security as well as contraceptive adherence.