According to the United Nations, almost every second pregnancy is unplanned. Worldwide, three in ten actually drop out. In Austria, unlike countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America, abortions are considered safe, but experts say care for unwanted pregnant women could be improved.
The Austrian offering is only in the middle segment compared to Europe. According to the European Abortion Policies Atlas, limited access and location in the criminal code (as in 14 other European countries) contribute to this. Some Northern and Western European countries are doing better: they regulate abortion in health law, fund it publicly and run campaigns against disinformation.
At the symposium ’50 years of unpunished abortion – and what next?’ experts criticized the same points on Wednesday. The costs (several hundred euros) are too high, the supply – especially in public hospitals – is inadequate and not transparent and the information is not always neutral. Viennese gynecologist Michael Adam, who performs abortions himself, said some colleagues are shying away from doing so. Some say the advice is too time-consuming, others recall previous problems with late-term abortions that have now been resolved.
Those affected feel pressure to justify themselves
According to the experts, there is also social stigmatization. Psychologist Miriam Gertz said that anyone who plans or has had an abortion often feels pressure to justify themselves as other people portray the person as frivolous, irresponsible and selfish. According to them, the main reasons for abortions are poverty, relationship problems and what is perceived as an inopportune moment (for example, during training).
It is not primarily young people who terminate a pregnancy. According to gynecologist Barbara Maier, the majority (69.5 percent) are between 18 and 34 years old and many already have one or more children. Women over 40 also terminate their pregnancies. Many women have at most one or two abortions in their lives; there are also women who undergo multiple abortions. The speakers agreed that the consultation should not be judged and that the situation should be viewed individually.
Experience can be managed well
Gertz said unwanted pregnant women often find the time before the abortion stressful, but sometimes feel relieved and happy afterwards. A study by Katharina Leithner-Dziubas and Anita Weichberger concluded that those affected coped well with medically necessary abortions after about a year.
How many abortions are performed annually in Austria can only be estimated, as no official statistics exist. According to the experts, 80 percent work in private practice, with those affected increasingly opting for medical abortion with the pill Mifegyne. This can be done until the ninth week of pregnancy and is gentler. There is also a surgical procedure in which the embryo and the uterine lining are aspirated. This method is also possible after the ninth week.
Expanded offering, more telemedicine
According to the experts, to improve the situation of unintentionally pregnant women in Austria, new legal regulations, a comprehensive offer, more telemedicine for medical abortion and cost recovery by the public sector are needed. In addition, contraceptives must be offered at the expense of the health insurer and sex education must be improved.
The article is based on lectures at the symposium “50 years of unpunished abortion – and what now?”, organized by the Austrian Society for Psychosomatics in Gynecology and Obstetrics (ÖGPGG), the Vienna Office for Women’s Health and Health Goals of the City of Vienna. Vienna and the Austrian Family Planning Association (ÖGF).
Source: Krone
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