Having an Abortion Using Mifepristone and Home Misoprostol: A Qualitative Analysis of Women's Experiences

Fielding, Stephen L.; Edmunds, Emme; Schaff, Eric A.

doi:10.2307/3030230

Cited by 49 publications

(89 citation statements)

References 15 publications

(14 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…In legal settings, we found that the older studies described more medicalized approaches that required women to remain in clinic for four hours following misoprostol administration. 16,17 Shifts to less medicalized care in the more recent studies took the following forms: administering the misoprostol to women at the second appointment but then sending them home to abort, [18][19][20]4 giving women misoprostol at the second appointment but allowing them to selfadminister it at home, 18,21 giving women misoprostol at the first appointment to be self-administered at home, 19,[22][23][24][25][26][27] and giving women both mifepristone and misoprostol at the first appointment to be taken at home. 27,28 The studies from legal settings that reported misoprostol-only abortions reported self-administration at home.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…They often reported some degree of anxiety at the beginning of the process but reported relief at the end and a strong sense of satisfaction with the choice to self-manage. 19,20,22,23,29 In some contexts, the use of misoprostol at home for early medical abortion falls within existing interpretive frameworks and practices (such as "menstrual regulation" (Bangladesh) and was understood as one of many treatments for local illness categories referring to missed menstrual periods (e.g. "late menses" in Brazil).…”

Section: General Perceptions Of Self-management Of Medical Abortionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…16,33,42 Preparation for self-management In preparing for self-management of medical abortion, women reported anxiety, uncertainty, or ambivalence, sometimes to do with the decision to terminate the pregnancy, but more often in relation to the process and experience of the medical abortion. 19,20,22,23,29,39,43,44 Effective counselling by trained providers during the first step of medical abortion that offered women a sense of confidence, being prepared, having a choice, and being in control, was important in building the acceptability of self-management among women. 17,[22][23][24]44 Women and providers both felt that critical aspects of the educational component of counselling included preparing women for possible side effects and complications.…”

Section: General Perceptions Of Self-management Of Medical Abortionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…19,20,22,23,29,39,43,44 Effective counselling by trained providers during the first step of medical abortion that offered women a sense of confidence, being prepared, having a choice, and being in control, was important in building the acceptability of self-management among women. 17,[22][23][24]44 Women and providers both felt that critical aspects of the educational component of counselling included preparing women for possible side effects and complications. Critical psychosocial components of counselling included: preparing women for the variability in individual women's physical experiences of medical abortion; the practical and physical difficulties of managing the expulsion process at home; and the fact that most women reported anxiety during the beginning of the medical abortion process but relief at its completion.…”

Section: General Perceptions Of Self-management Of Medical Abortionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Critical psychosocial components of counselling included: preparing women for the variability in individual women's physical experiences of medical abortion; the practical and physical difficulties of managing the expulsion process at home; and the fact that most women reported anxiety during the beginning of the medical abortion process but relief at its completion. 20,22,23,30,33,36 Providing adequate counselling in the context of health facilities was, however, seen as time consuming for health professionals and written materials for patients were reported to be underutilized. 19,22,29,33,34 We also derived a number of insights from evidence in both restricted and legal contexts where women self-administer misoprostol through informal networks.…”

Section: General Perceptions Of Self-management Of Medical Abortionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Self-management of medical abortion: a qualitative evidence synthesis

Wainwright¹,

Swartz

Leon

2016

Reproductive Health Matters

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Medical abortion is a method of pregnancy termination that by its nature enables more active involvement of women in the process of managing, and sometimes even administering the medications for, their abortions. This qualitative evidence synthesis reviewed the global evidence on experiences with, preferences for, and concerns about greater self-management of medical abortion with lesser health professional involvement. We focused on qualitative research from multiple perspectives on women's experiences of self-management of first trimester medical abortion (< 12 weeks gestation). We included research from both legal and legally-restricted contexts whether medical abortion was accessed through formal or informal systems. A review team of four identified 36 studies meeting inclusion criteria, extracted data from these studies, and synthesized review findings. Review findings were organized under the following themes: general perceptions of self-management, preparation for self-management, logistical considerations, issues of choice and control, and meaning and experience. The synthesis highlights that the qualitative evidence base is still small, but that the available evidence points to the overall acceptability of self-administration of medical abortion. We highlight particular considerations when offering self-management options, and identify key areas for future research. Further qualitative research is needed to strengthen this important evidence base.

show abstract