Reforming abortion services in the UK: less hypocrisy, more acknowledgment of complexity

Abstract

A moment when the world′s most powerful country has just elected one of its most anti-abortion presidents might seem an odd time for UK abortion care providers to be seeking the liberalisation of Britain′s abortion law. But 50 years on from the passing of the 1967 Abortion Act, abortion care in the UK is heading towards a crisis, and practitioners are undeterred by the political climate. This is reflected in the founding of a new support organisation for service providers, the British Society for Abortion Care Providers (BSACP),1 a new campaign for legal reform by the UK′s largest service provider, the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS),2 active consultation processes on abortion care quality and legal reform within the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) and the Faculty of Sexual & Reproductive Healthcare (FSRH), and a constant stream of material submitted to this journal.3–13 Among many challenges women seeking abortion face, inequitable access, inadequate numbers of appropriately trained staff, stigmatisation, and a culture of exceptionalism, or ghettoisation, have often been highlighted.14 ,15 Much abortion care in the UK is provided outside the National Health Service in specialist organisations, excluding students …