In this clip, Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health (ANSIRH) draws on the Global Turnaway Study to profile women's challenges accessing abortion care in six countries: Bangladesh, Columbia, Nepal, South Africa, Tunisia and the United States.
The narrator explains, "Even in countries where abortion is permitted, women face barriers to accessing safe services ... Once women discover they are pregnant, the process of deciding what to do about the pregnancy can be complicated by lack of knowledge about the law, family pressures, and social stigma."
One woman seeking abortion care in South Africa reflected, "I was extremely desperate. I Googled everything from abortion clinics on the internet, everything about that abortion drug. To be honest, what also scared me was going to one of our public hospitals." She said, "The government is basically forcing me to get a backstreet abortion."
According to the narrator, "Even when required by law to provide abortion, providers sometimes deny care to women without explanation or referral." A woman seeking abortion care in Tunisia detailed how providers kept delaying her care, stating, "They (the doctors) made me come and go ... In sum, during this period of time, they really fooled me."
Noting that women who are turned away "are left with little or no hope to receive legal and safe abortion care," the narrator concludes, "We hope these stories contribute to a conversation about increasing access to safe legal abortion care" (Hatch, Huffington Post, 5/2).
