Western Trust in process of recruiting staff to resume abortion service

The Western Trust has said that staff recruitment is necessary before an abortion service can be reinstated.

The Trust suspended its Early Medical Abortion Service (EMA) in April because of staff shortages. 

Two months later women in the Western Trust area are still unable to access the service.

Meanwhile, a reproductive health charity this week announced that it will be forced to withdraw the central access point into Early Medical Abortion (EMA) services if funding is not made available by October 1, 2021.

The Informing Choices NI (ICNI) service was launched in April 2020 and enables people from across NI to contact a single telephone number where they can access non-directive information, pregnancy choices counselling if requested, and referral into an EMA service within their local health trust. Post pregnancy counselling support is also available.

Despite abortion regulations taking effect from March 31, 2020, services are yet to be commissioned and the central access point (CAP) has been operating outside of a properly resourced framework for the past 14 months. 

As ICNI are a small charity with limited resources this has placed considerable pressures which, it said, ‘we cannot continue to absorb’.

The provision of the service to date is outlined within a new report – ‘Beyond Decriminalisation: pregnancy choices and abortion care in Northern Ireland’ - which highlights that 2,182 women and girls contacted the central access point between April 15, 2020 to April 12, 2021.

The number of EMAs which have occurred in Northern Ireland during this period is unknown, but will be fewer, ICNI said, for a number of reasons including the suspension of services in some trusts.

Commenting on the report and the potential withdrawal of the central access point, ICNI’s Director of Advocacy and Policy, Ruairi Rowan, said: “Since ICNI began providing the central access point we have made repeated attempts to engage with the Health Minister about its sustainability and development.

"In doing so we have made clear that an unfunded service of this scale cannot run indefinitely. “Despite these repeated warnings we have received no response, despite the Minister publicly signposting women seeking local abortion access to our service.”

RISK

Doctors for Choice NI said they note with ‘increasing frustration and disappointment’ that the Department of Health have, to date, offered neither funding or support to the CAP.

They say it has been providing women in NI with an invaluable service.

A Doctors for Choice spokesperson said: “As a key link connecting women with the medical assistance they require, the collapse of the CAP jeopardises the provision of early medical abortion in Northern Ireland.

“It places people who can get pregnant at risk by once again forcing those in need of abortion healthcare to travel to England or resort to pills from unregulated sources - without the input of local healthcare professionals who are willing and able to provide the appropriate aftercare and access to contraception.

“We urge the Northern Ireland Health Minister Robin Swann and the Department of Health to urgently fund this essential service without delay.”

STAFF SHORTAGE

A paper has been published by Ulster University academic, Dr Fiona Bloomer, which targeted medical, nursing and midwifery staff working in the obstetrics and gynaecology.

It showed that out of over 300 respondents, 60 per cent of NI healthcare professionals working in the field were willing to provide or lead medical abortion services.

The findings demonstrated widespread support for decriminalisation of abortion up until 24 weeks gestation.

The majority of clinicians stated they were willing to provide abortions in certain circumstances.

Despite regional variation in this, the results show that there are sufficient numbers of clinicians to provide a service within each Health and Social Care Trust.

The Western Trust had the highest percentage of medical professionals willing to participate in medical and surgical abortions – 65 per cent and 54 per cent respectively.

Therefore, Dr O’Brien asked the Board how EMA collapsed and when it will be reinstated because the will is there to provide it.

In response, a spokesperson for the Western said it requires ‘additional nursing and medical support’ in order to deliver this service and continues to actively explore all options.

“This includes ongoing efforts by the Trust to put additional staff in place as soon as possible in order to resume the provision of the EMA service with minimum disruption,” he explained.

“However at present, there is no set date for the resumption of the EMA service until the staffing is in place.

“The Trust apologises for any concern this may cause and can assure the public that we are continuing to work towards minimising any disruption this will cause in the interim period.

“Further information will follow when available.”