Are our abortion services needed?

Our abortion services are guided by the definition of health provided the World Health Organization: “Health is a state of physical, mental and social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” (Preamble, Constitution of the World Health Organization, adopted in 1946 by all members of that organization as the operational definition of health). It is a well-known fact that, without a reasonable access to safe abortion services, women voluntarily risk their health and their lives in order to obtain illegal abortion services which are performed by people who are not qualified for this type of procedure, along with poor conditions of hygiene.

The access to a safe and legal abortion service is, therefore, necessary to protect the health and lives of pregnant women. Aborto na Nuvem defends that any woman with an unwanted pregnancy and without access to safe abortion, qualifies to obtain health care within the exceptions of health and life, to the detriment of any restrictive abortion law. From the moment a woman has an unwanted pregnancy and has no access to safe abortion services, her life is in danger.

According to the World Health Organization, 1 in every 300 women who undergo clandestine abortions dies purposelessly. Furthermore, even in countries where birth is considered safe, 1 in every 5 000 or 10 000 women die during childbirth (WHO). An abortion induced through the use of Misoprostol (Cytotec – 200mcg) has a mortality rate of 1 per 100 000. It means that an abortion using with these drugs is always an option to save lives.