Emily-Rosedidknowshecouldaccessa free,safeabortionwhen
she was considering whether or not to terminateherpregnancy.
But that didn’t mean the process on the governmentsystemwaseasy.
‘I didn’t want to go to my community clinicfora referralfora TOP
because I knew I’d be recognised,’ she says.‘Ourcommunityis
small, and the people working at the clinicknowmeandmyfamily.’
Even though it’s illegal for anyone workingat yourlocalclinicto
tell others about your appointment and medicalneeds,thissadlyisn’t
always adhered to.
Emily-Rose was in her second trimester, meaninga medicalabortion
wasn’t an option. ‘I needed to have a surgicalabortion[thisis conducted
if the pregnancy poses a danger to the woman’sphysicalor mentalhealth,
or if the pregnancy is as a result of rape orincest],’sheexplains.‘Once
I’d made up my mind to have a TOP, I couldn’thavea medicalabortion.
I had to go to my local clinic – even thoughI wasworriedaboutit not
being kept confidential.’
The nurse did a blood test to confirm Emily-Rose’spregnancy,andthen
provided her with a referral letter to a governmenthospitalfora surgical
abortion. Emily-Rose was never offered counsellingduringtheprocess,nor
was she given much information about whatto expect.
‘When the day came, I arrived early in themorningat thehospital,’she
says. ‘I wasn’t allowed to eat anything, soI rememberbeingnervousand
hungry. I was asked to undress and put ona hospitalgown.’Emily-Rose
was taken to a waiting room with a handfulof otherwomen.‘I was
one of the youngest, at 19,’ she recalls. A nursearrivedwithpillsforeach
of the women. ‘We all sat together, in thisbare,coldroomandtookour
pills. We were told we should remain seateduntilwewerecalled,’adds
Emily-Rose.
‘The pill made me feel quite nauseous,’ shesays.‘I couldliterallyfeel
my vagina opening up, and I had what feltlikeverybadperiodpain.’The
pill, Misoprostol (also used in medical abortionprocedures),doesindeed
open up the cervix. This allows the doctorto clearthewombof pregnancy-
related tissues in theatre.
‘A surgical termination refers to a procedurewherethepregnancyis
removed from the uterus,’ explains Murray.‘Thesemethodsreferto either
using suction or an instrument to empty theuterus.Nocuttingis involved.’
As Emily-Rose waited, a nurse would comeandfetcheachwoman
to go into theatre, where a doctor completedtheprocedure.While
uncomfortable, for Emily-Rose the experiencewastraumaticprimarily
because of how she was treated. ‘I felt likenoneof thenursesor doctors
cared,’ she says. ‘I barely remember the procedurebecauseit wasn’ta
huge deal. What was a big deal was howI felt.I remembersoclearlythe
nurse and doctor chatting to each other andignoringmeastheyworked.
No-one let me know what the doctor wasgoingto do,whatto expect,or
how things were going. The way in whichI wastreatedfeltmoretraumatic
for me than the abortion itself.’
Emily-Rose’s story is sadly not uncommon.Whetherthrough
limited resources and time, poor training orlackof care,theway
healthcare providers treat women seekinga TOPoftenleavesmuch
to be desired.
HEALTHCARE
WORKERS
SUFFERFROM
STIGMA,
TOO Spare a thought for the
healthcare workers who do offer
TOPservices in the government
sector. ‘They can be stigmatised
bytheir peers or colleagues for
doing so, due to the personalDO YOU WANT
TO TALK ABOUT IT?
Something that every woman we
spoketo hadin common was that none
ofthemwere offered pre- and post-
counselling– even though legally this
shouldbeoffered. Lopez Gonzalez
confirms:‘Thelaw says that this counselling
can’tbe“directive” (it can’t tell
youwhatyou should or shouldn’t
do)andit’snot mandatory, so you can
refuseit if youdon’t want it. But it should
definitely be offered to you.’During 2010–2014,
an estimated
56 million induced
(safe and unsafe)
abortions
occurred each
year worldwide.56
COSMOPOLITAN.CO.ZA | SEPTEMBER 2019PHOTOGRAPHYGETTY IMAGES ANDISTOCKPHOTO.COMSOURCESBHEKISISACENTRE FOR HEALTH JOURNALISM, WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION ANDSOUTHAFRICAN FAMILY PRACTICE*NAME HAS BEEN CHANGED