This article is based on the Imagining the Next Chapter for Abortion Care in Canada: Pathways to Access and Equity panel hosted by missINFORMED on May 2, 2024. We invited five leaders in reproductive health and abortion to provide their insights on the present and future of abortion care in Canada.
This is part 3 of our 3-part webinar recap. Click here and here to read the previous articles.
The abortion care landscape in Canada is constantly changing, with improvements in reproductive medication and technology, and policy changes to promote (and unfortunately sometimes restrict) access. While there have been meaningful changes in the area of abortion care, such as the introduction of medication abortion and its expanded access, as well as the emergence of many community organizations supporting people accessing abortion care, there is still a lot of work to be done. We asked our panelists to look to the future and share their hopes for abortion care in the next 5 years.
Nora hopes to see the end of stigmatizing, graphic, and often fake images of aborted fetuses which are used during anti-abortion protests and even distributed in people’s mailboxes. They want to see abortion care become more accessible for all. Nora is excited to continue working as an abortion doula and reproductive health leader with a network of driven people who are passionate about improving access to abortion and lifting each other up in the process.
A.J. called us to appreciate the progress that has been made in accepting trans folks into abortion care spaces – progress that they hope to see continue into the future. They also highlighted the importance of providers being proactive rather than reactive. This means providers need to anticipate and be prepared to treat people who belong to equity-deserving groups (i.e., by providing gender-affirming, culturally safe(r), trauma-informed care) instead of meeting these patients with surprise.
Clark echoed A.J.’s sentiments on the importance of being proactive in abortion care spaces. He hopes to see more people within the healthcare system advocating for change, rather than relying solely on community organizations who are outside of the healthcare system to drive change. They hope for partnership and collaboration between medical services and community organizations, citing the amazing partnership between the ROSE Clinic and Abortion Support Services Atlantic as a model example.
Willow described her 3 major hopes for the future to make abortion more safely accessible for Indigenous people. The first is to see Indigenous communities reclaiming abortion as a traditional practice and value. The second is to see the availability of non-judgemental holistic wraparound services that support both emotional and spiritual recovery before and after abortion care. The last is to see funding offered for clinics to provide access to Indigenous abortion doulas, elders, and counselors. In the spirit of radical optimism and speaking as a provider, Natasha shared her vision of safe and accessible healthcare for all people who live in Canada regardless of their insurance access or status. Specific to abortion, she hopes that the “functional gestational age limit” will increase in the Atlantic provinces, allowing more people to access care closer to home. Here, it is important to note that Canada does not have legal restrictions on the gestational age at which someone can have an abortion. However, gestational restrictions still exist because of many other reasons such as a lack of willing providers, lack of provider education, limits set by individual hospitals, or regulations set by provincial or territorial governments (1).
Finally, we wanted to end on something that we can all do to promote access to abortion in our communities. Given that stigma is a huge barrier to abortion access, and one that is often invisible and very personal to those feeling it, our panelists weighed in on what practical things we can do to eliminate stigma.
Appreciate why stigma exists: A.J. pointed to the political forces behind abortion stigma and secrecy. People in power with anti-choice views can use stigma to continue to separate and oppress populations by limiting reproductive freedom and bodily autonomy. By voting responsibly and asking our political representatives to make their stance on abortion clear, we can all show government leaders that abortion access is important to the public.
Continue the conversation: Natasha expressed the importance of continuing to have conversations to share accurate information and lived experiences about abortion care. Nora also added the importance of addressing and correcting misinformation that perpetuates stigma.
Use better language: Nora pointed out that language is powerful and our word choices are important in conversations about abortion care. In this space, words have to be chosen carefully to avoid perpetuating oppression and stigma. Here’s a resource explaining some terms that can cause stigma and better alternatives for talking about abortion: https://www.acog.org/contact/media-center/abortion-language-guide
Normalize abortion: Willow suggests we take steps to normalize abortion as an aspect of healthcare and outside of healthcare. Abortion is one way someone can design their own life and plan their future, making it an essential healthcare service for social, financial, emotional, mental, and physical reasons. Traditional methods for abortion (and contraception) have long been used by Indigenous peoples all over the world as a means to control their fertility and family sizes based on their lifestyles, and to support the wellbeing of their communities.
To round out the conversation, our panelists shared some helpful resources for people accessing abortion and providers:
It’s My Choice: A decision aid that helps people make informed decisions when choosing between medication vs. procedural abortions. This resource can be accessed from the Sex & U website.
We all have a role to play: This professional development module designed for all healthcare providers explains barriers to care from an intersectional lens and offers strategies to improve access to care.
Doula’s guide to abortion in Canada: An accessible guide that provides information about abortion care as well as guidance on how to support folks who are receiving abortion care.
We have made a ton of progress in making abortion care more accessible and there is a lot of hope for the landscape of abortion care in Canada in the future. It is thanks to the continual efforts and dedication of reproductive health advocates like our panelists and the community organizations that they support that we continue to push towards a world where abortion care is more accessible, inclusive, and free from stigma. We at missINFORMED are dedicated to being part of that change.
Want to learn more about what our panelists have to say? Watch the full panel webinar.
Acknowledgement: We at missINFORMED are incredibly grateful to all of our panelists for their dedication to reproductive justice and their willingness to participate in our panel discussion. Thank you to our panelists and to all who have engaged with our panel discussion.
References:
Only information that was not mentioned during the panel discussion is cited.
Abortion Access Tracker. Barriers to Abortion Access. 2024 Mar 1. Available from: https://www.abortionaccesstracker.ca/barriers-to-abortion-access#gestational-age-limits [Accessed 2024 Aug 18]
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