Nepal – COVID taking toll on sexual and reproductive health

RASTRIYA SAMACHAR SAMITI, Nepalnews
2021 DEC 26

COVID-19 is taking its toll on sexual and reproductive health in the country. The global pandemic has thrown up challenges to the government's goals of reducing maternal and child mortality rate while unwanted pregnancy and unsafe abortion have increased due to lack of access to contraceptives and safe abortion services, according to the Department of Health Services under the Family Welfare Division.

The use of contraceptives has dropped to 39.37 per cent during the pandemic. One hundred thirty-four new mothers and pregnant women lost their lives during the infection between March 24 and July 21, 2020, when the country was in lockdown and the number of women who availed safe abortion service during the same period was less than 15,000, according to the Department. Lack of transportation and qualified health workers, excessive bleeding, abortion and labour complication as well as delivery at home were among the factors that led to their death.

Continued: https://www.nepalnews.com/s/issues/covid-taking-toll-on-sexual-and-reproductive-health

First National Study on the Incidence of Abortion and Unintended Pregnancy in Nepal Released

First National Study on the Incidence of Abortion and Unintended Pregnancy in Nepal Released

Despite Abortion Legalization and Efforts to Expand Access, Many Women Continue to Have Clandestine Procedures
Feb 10, 2017

In the first-ever national study of the incidence of abortion and unintended pregnancy in Nepal, researchers found that, despite abortion being legally available, many Nepalese women have potentially unsafe abortions performed by unapproved or untrained providers. The study, “Abortion Incidence and Unintended Pregnancy in Nepal,” conducted jointly by Nepal’s Center for Research on Environment Health and Population Activities (CREHPA) and the U.S.-based Guttmacher Institute, found that approximately 323,000 induced abortions occurred in Nepal in 2014, giving it an abortion rate of 42 per 1,000 women of reproductive age (15–49). However, out of all induced abortions, only 42% were provided legally at government-approved facilities.

Continued at source: Guttmacher Institute: http://us8.campaign-archive2.com/?u=ca1e42e28a45edcdc4e51bc32&id=713d9681b2&e=2c39881aa9

No evidence that unsafe abortion cases are on the rise in Nepal

by Safe Abortion, Sept. 21, 2016

On 11 September 2016, the Himalayan Times published an article making a series of claims that were very problematic, while offering no evidence for its claims. It claimed first that “cases of illegal and unsafe abortion have been on the rise in Bajura district lately”. As evidence, the article states that one woman had been hospitalised and was “on the verge of death [a week] after taking pills from a local ayurvedic medicine shop…to terminate her pregnancy without any medical consultation”. Although the shop was ayurvedic, the article claims the pills were mifepristone 200mg and misoprostol 200mg, that she had suffered heavy bleeding shortly afterwards, but was hospitalised only two days later. It reports that the hospital chief had informed that she had a very low haemoglobin level and was fighting for her life. The actual cause and diagnosis is unclear.

The article also claims that: “The Hospital has stated that both the medicines are banned for use.” This is in fact not true about mifepristone or misoprostol.

Most of the rest of the claims in the article are even more problematic. For example, it states: “[Her] husband… was unaware about the medications being illegally sold at the local Hospital.” Yet the article had said the pills had been sold to the woman at a local ayurvedic shop, implying they were ayurvedic pills. The article then states: “The ayurvedic shop operator… also said he was unaware about the ban.”

The article then claims that “Though illegal, the medicines are brought from India via Dhangadhi, Mahendranagar, Nepalgunj and other far-western cities. Till date, no any authority has made proper inspection regarding the matter and the medicines are being sold rampantly. However, it also states: “The Chief District Officer … said he is unaware of the situation.”

In fact, medical abortion pills are available legally in Nepal for first trimester abortion from a medical provider. The report of the seriousness of the woman’s condition could have been used to distinguish between medical abortion pills and other pills of unknown content and safety. It could have reported that medical abortion is available free from the public health system if women are within the first trimester of pregnancy, and encouraged women to seek help as early as possible. It should not have made medical abortion pills sound dangerous, when they are very safe, let alone claiming they are banned.

Awareness-raising sessions with journalists that provide them with accurate and evidence-based information and share ideas about how to investigate and report experiences like these in a critical way can help to influence and inform public thinking. The woman in this article was of an unknown age and number of weeks pregnant. Because she was very anaemic, she was likely to be poor, may have had several children already, and the overall state of her health was unknown. A safe abortion may have saved her life and health, while continuing the pregnancy may have put her at great risk, just as an unsafe abortion apparently did.

Anand Tamang, Executive Director of the Center for Research on Environment Health and Population Activities (CREHPA), commented in response to the article: “It is a shame that some local media tend to blow up a case to maximum proportion. The article first reports the woman went to an ayurvedic medicine shop and then switches it to mifepristone and misoprostol without any evidence. We are going to do workshops with media to raise issues like this for 28 September this year.”

ARTICLE SOURCE: Himalayan Times, by Prakash Singh, 11 September 2016 + PHOTO

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Source: International Campaign for Women's Right to Safe Abortion

21.09.2016