WHO Launches New Guideline on Safe Abortion and Post-Abortion Care


 

WHO’s new guideline, Health worker roles in providing safe abortion care and post-abortion contraception, aims to help break down one critical barrier which limits access to safe abortion care – the lack of trained providers.

It is estimated that the global deficit of skilled health-care professionals will reach 12.9 million by 2035, and the lack of specialised providers is particularly severe in regions where there is a high burden of unsafe abortion. Within countries there are often large disparities of trained safe abortion care providers, with shortages being particularly high in rural areas and the public sector.

WHO’s new guideline helps to address these issues by offering guidance on how different types of tasks can be shifted across or shared appropriately by trained health-care providers. It shows how a greater range of health-care professionals can also be used including for example practitioners, nurses, midwives and auxiliaries.

The WHO guideline is the first ever to give evidence-based recommendations on the safety, effectiveness, feasibility and acceptability of involving a range of health workers in the delivery of recommended and effective interventions for providing safe abortion and post-abortion care, including post-abortion contraception.

For more information, please see Health Worker Roles in Providing Safe Abortion Care and Post-Abortion Contraception.

[adapted from resource]

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