Professor Assists with CIHR-Funded Survey for Abortion Providers
According to a new research project, abortion is experienced by a third of all females in Canada. This new project titled the Canadian Surgical and Medical Abortion Provider Survey (CAPS) was recently provided with more than $400,000 over four years by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). The project is one that has brought a number of Canadian ObGyn researchers together, including Dr. Jon Barrett, a professor with the University of Toronto’s Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology and the head of Maternal-Fetal Medicine (MFM) at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre.
In 2012, there were a number of changes to abortion regulations in Canada, which led to an increase in the number of providers and medication, as well as new clinical guidelines to improve quality of care. Investigators involved with the CAPS project found that there was a need for a national survey of medical and surgical abortion providers to determine the changes in characteristics, distribution and quality of care for abortions in Canada since the 2012 changes. They also believe that there is a need to determine to what extent providers experienced harassment and stigma due to their work. Investigators believe that the information gathered through the survey can then be used to improve access to high-quality abortion care and related policies.
Dr. Barrett was specifically chosen as the MFM lead for the grant as he provided input on the need to include later terminations for fetal abnormalities in the survey.
“It is vital to have a national view on abortion availability and practice,” says Dr. Barrett. “From an MFM point of view, the impact of genetic second term abortion is often forgotten. We need to have a clear picture in Canada, which is why this grant is very important.”
Read more about the project on the CIHR website.
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