Free Workshop on ‘Reproductive Coercion and Abuse: Developing Policy and Practice’, 13.00–16.30 on Tuesday 20 September 2020, in Central London
21 August 2022
BPAS Centre for Reproductive Research & Communication (CRRC) and Aston University, Birmingham are organising a FREE Workshop on ‘Reproductive Coercion and Abuse: Developing Policy and Practice’ on Tuesday 20 September 2020 from 13.00–16.30 at Christopher Place, Chalton Street, London NW1 1JF.
This workshop will be of interest to healthcare professionals with an interest in safeguarding in contraceptive provision, abortion care and maternity services, and experts from gender-based violence organisations. It focuses on reproductive coercion and abuse as a specific form of interpersonal violence which involves the exercise of power and control to reduce or prevent autonomous decision-making of another in the area of reproductive health (e.g. denying access to birth control, abortion coercion, and enforced pregnancy).
The workshop will present interim findings from a qualitative research project which seeks to draw together knowledge and experiences from reproductive healthcare professionals and gender-based violence advocates.
It will provide an opportunity for in-depth discussions of the issues raised by the research. It will also inform the future direction of the project and ensure it reflects the priorities identified by stakeholders.
It also seeks to bring together experts in reproductive health and gender-based violence to develop a network of experts with an interest in this area for future policy and practice development.
Some financial assistance for travel for those unable to access organisational funding may be available and confirmation of attendance can be provided for continuing professional development (CPD) purposes. If you have questions about the event please contact Dr Pam Lowe (p.k.lowe@aston.ac.uk).
FREE sign up at the link below until 20 September. NB. Places are extremely limited!
David Bromham Seed Research Fund 2022 – Applications Invited (Deadline 15 October 2022)
21 August 2022
The David Bromham Seed Research Fund 2022 of £4500 will be awarded to a single recipient/representative of a research group, to support the development of sexual and reproductive healthcare research ideas. Dr David Bromham was a previous President of the Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare (FSRH) and left a gift after his death, so an award could be given in his name. The competition first ran in 2021, and is running this year for the final time.
This fund is open to current FSRH members (including affiliate members) who are planning or are already undertaking research into sexual and reproductive healthcare.
The FSRH are looking for original research ideas that reflect priorities in sexual and reproductive health and its care, specifically on topics related to contraception, abortion and reproductive health and well-being. The research project could have already started (from 1 January 2022 onwards) and funding is required for additional stages.
Application deadline: 10.00am on 15 October 2022
Further details/application form: https://www.fsrh.org/news/david-bromham-seed-research-fund-2022-launched/
New Legal Requirements from 30.08.22 for Early Medical Abortions (EMAs) where Mifepristone and/or Misoprostol is Taken at Home in England and Wales
9 August 2022
The government have published secondary legislation that adds new regulations for early medical abortions (EMAs) where mifepristone and/or misoprostol is taken at home in England and Wales. This will be a legal requirement from 30.8.22. They have also announced changes to the HSA4 notification forms in England and Wales, and they will notify us when those are ready (these won’t be mandatory until 31.3.23) – basically these are to report where each stage of the care was provided (in person, remote, and where mife and miso were taken).
The doctor who prescribes mifepristone and misoprostol, where either are to be used at home, must sign a declaration stating:
“I am of the opinion, formed in good faith, that, if the medicine is administered in accordance with my instructions, the pregnancy will not exceed ten weeks at the time when the medicine is administered.”
The easiest way to do this is to enter this text on the prescription (depending on your system, this can be appended to the directions or free text part of the script – ideally pre-filled within an electronic system for mifepristone, or perhaps as a label or stamp).
Alternatively you can fill out a “Certificate C” which states the same thing (see below – unhelpfully only supplied as an image) and at: www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2022/811/images/uksi_20220811_en_001
The legislation itself is at: The Abortion (Amendment) Regulations 2022 (legislation.gov.uk). If you have a desire to wade through this, “Schedule One” means HSA1, “Schedule Two” means HSA4.
This certification needs to be kept in the notes under the same rules as HSA1 (i.e. for three years).
Jonathan Lord (BSACP Co-Chair)
BPAS Centre for Reproductive Research & Communication (CRRC)
29 July 2022
Established in 2019, the Centre for Reproductive Research & Communication (CRRC) at BPAS exists to develop and deliver a research agenda that furthers access to evidence-based reproductive healthcare and choices. Through rigorous multidisciplinary research and impactful communication, the CRRC aims to inform policy, practice, and public discourse. We draw directly on BPAS’ own work as a reproductive health provider to inform our agenda and work in collaboration and through strategic partnerships to achieve our mission. As a research team, we have experience of conducting research on abortion, contraception, pregnancy, public health, medical ethics and law, and social sciences in the UK and beyond.
For more information about the CRRC’s activities visit: https://www.bpas.org/crrc
The CRRC Resource Center/webpage features for current news, details of relevant publications, and CRRC events. If you are a student or a researcher with a project you would like to undertake and are looking for a host organisation visit: https://www.bpas.org/resources/research/instructions-for-researchers/
The Heather Trickey 2022 Essay Prize
29 July 2022
Essay submissions are invited for ‘The Heather Trickey 2022 Essay Prize’. A prize of £1000 will be awarded for an original piece of written work not exceeding 3000 words. The essay may address any topic in the field of women’s reproductive health.
Successful essays will: (1) identify a specific area along women’s reproductive health cycle, describe the population affected, set out how it is that women are currently underserved with regard to health provision in this area and explain why this area deserves focused attention to bring about change; (2) be realistic in identifying barriers to change; and (3) be solution-focused.
The judges are keen to receive submissions that address unresolved conflicts between current public health approaches and women’s needs and lived experiences. They’d like to see suggestions for more effective systems of care that support both women’s reproductive rights and public health objectives. They expect to see submissions that take a woman-centred approach and that recognise that even well-intentioned health professionals cannot stand in for women’s voices. Finally, they want this prize to provide a platform for ideas that might not otherwise gain an audience. The winner will receive not just money, but also a platform from which an issue that they care about might be taken forward in the real world.
Further details about the essay prize: https://heathertrickeyprize.org/the-essay-prize Submission deadline for completed essays: 17 October 2022
Joint BSACP/RSM Hybrid Conference on ‘Abortion Care: Focusing on the Future’ on Thursday 7 October 2022 at the RSM in London – REGISTRATION NOW OPEN!
18 June 2022
BSACP/RSM Online Conference Registration
Registration for this year’s conference jointly organised by the British Society of Abortion Care Providers (BSACP) and the RSM’s Sexuality & Sexual Health Section is now open!
This year’s conference provides the opportunity for healthcare professionals working in the field of abortion care to once again meet together face-to-face as a supportive community. The conference will facilitate networking and improve participants’ knowledge of new styles of abortion provision. It will look to the future in providing patient-centred care in an inclusive way. A ‘novel’ feature of this year’s conference will be a facilitated ‘book club’ discussion about a book on an abortion-related theme to be held during the lunch break.
The conference will offer an exciting programme whose aims are two-fold: (1) to provide information about maximising the role of nurses and midwives in abortion care, together with a contraceptive update and (2) to update abortion providers on providing inclusive abortion care in the context of an evolving abortion landscape.
The programme has been conceived to appeal to a broad range of healthcare professionals, including doctors, nurses, midwives, and those whose focus is abortion care provision.
We hope that most participants will decide to attend this event in person, and thus benefit from the opportunities for face-to-face networking with colleagues throughout the day. These activities include viewing the posters describing new research, browsing the commercial display stands, watching a topical documentary film or participating in a lively book club discussion, and socialising during the refreshment breaks and while partaking of a delicious hot buffet luncheon.
Programme: BSACP RSM 2022 Conference Programme dated 17062022 RSM promotional flyer: Abortion Care – Focusing on the Future – SER01 Conference Flyer 29.06.22
View the conference programme and register at: https://www.rsm.ac.uk/events/sexuality-and-sexual-health/2022-23/ser01/
***BSACP members qualify for preferential discounted rates, and ‘early bird’ registration fees are available to everyone until 25 August.***
To join BSACP, go to https://bsacp.org.uk/about-bsacp/membership/ and complete an online membership application form. BSACP members should registering for the conference on the RSM event webpage by clicking on the ‘Non-Member’ tab in the first instance.
Abstracts Invited for Free Communications and Poster Presentations
This year we are once again inviting poster submissions, from which four will be chosen to give 10-minute oral presentations at the conference, with a prize awarded for the best presentation. This is a great way to share ideas and/or showcase the work and achievements of your unit/team. We aren’t expecting every submission to be a rigorous academic piece of research – so do please consider submitting! It just needs to be original, contemporary (within the last 3 years) and related to abortion care and provision. See abstract preparation/submission guidelines: BSACP RSM 2022 Conference Abstracts for Free Communications Guidelines 17062022
The abstract submission deadline is 11.59pm on Thursday 1 September 2022.
First Trimester Abortion in Japan
12 May 2022
There are signs that mifepristone may be coming to Japan – after it became available in China and France in 1988. Mifepristone is now approved for use in early medical abortion in 82 countries (https://gynuity.org/resources/list-of-mifepristone-approvals). Based on more than 30 years of clinical study, the safety, effectiveness and acceptability of mifepristone and misoprostol used for early medical abortion is beyond any doubt.1-3
Linepharma has applied for marketing approval for a combi-pack of mifepristone and misoprostol in Japan (https://exbulletin.com/world/1357452/). If approved, this would provide choice of a medical abortion for the more than 150,000 Japanese women who currently have surgical abortions each year. Acceptability and satisfaction with the abortion process is greatest when women can choose between methods and receive their preferred method.4
The Japan Association of Obstetrics & Gynaecology (JAOG) has stated that medical abortion should only be performed in a hospital setting, not in community health facilities (https://okumi.hatenadiary.com/entry/2022/05/05/124733). This is contrary to the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline recommendation 50 which encourages self-administration of abortion medicines outside of a healthcare facility and self-management of the abortion process.5
JAOG has also said that the fee for this service should be no different from that for a surgical abortion (about US$875). This seems to us unreasonable when the vast majority of women having a medical abortion do not need to occupy treatment room or operating theatre facilities.
Some doctors in Japan have said that use of vacuum aspiration is not practised much in Japan because of the risk of cross-infection from the aspiration system and that the instruments are more difficult to clean. The fact is that the cannula/syringe used in manual vacuum aspiration and the cannula/tubing used in electric vacuum aspiration are all sterile and single-use in high-resource countries.
A survey in Japan of all abortion providers’ practice during the year 2019 has shown that in hospitals only one-quarter of abortions are being done by vacuum aspiration alone; three-quarters are done by dilation and curettage (D&C) alone or by vacuum aspiration combined with curettage.6 In this study, complications were found to be higher in procedures using D&C than in those using electric vacuum aspiration. This use of D&C for surgical abortion in the first trimester is contrary to the WHO guideline recommendation 23 at paragraph 3.4.15 and is considered obsolete in modern practice.7
We welcome this move to approve mifepristone which potentially affects 25 million women of reproductive age in Japan. We call on the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour & Welfare and the JAOG to pay attention to the extensive scientific evidence on the delivery of both medical and surgical abortion services. The introduction of early medical abortion should be done in such a way as to take into account the extensive worldwide experience and its proven safety track record. There should not be unnecessary restrictions to access such as excessive cost or overmedicalisation. Then the women of Japan will truly be able to benefit from the choices that now exist as a result of scientific progress.
References
- de Costa C, Carrette M. Early medical abortion. In: Rowlands S, ed. Abortion Care. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2014:62–70.
- Aiken A, Lohr PA, Lord J, et al. Effectiveness, safety and acceptability of no-test medical abortion (termination of pregnancy) provided via telemedicine: a national cohort study. BJOG 2021;128(9):1464–1474. doi: 10.1111/1471-0528.16668.
- Schummers L, Darling EK, Dunn S, et al. Abortion safety and use with normally prescribed mifepristone in Canada. NEJM 2022;386:57–67. doi: 10.1056/NEJMsa2109779.
- Kapp N, Lohr PA. Modern methods to induce abortion: safety, efficacy and choice. Best Pract Res Clin Obstet Gynaecol 2020;63:37–44.
- World Health Organization (WHO). Abortion Care Guideline. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2022. https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/349316
- Nakamura E, Kobayashi K, Sekizawa A, et al. Survey on spontaneous miscarriage and induced abortion safety at less than 12 weeks of gestation in Japan. J Obstet Gynaecol Res 2021;47(12):4158–4163.
- Roblin P. Vacuum aspiration. In: Rowlands S, ed. Abortion Care. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2014:71–79.
Notes on the Authors
Sam Rowlands, MBBS, MD, LLM, FRCGP, FFSRH, is a Visiting Professor in the Department of Medical Science & Public Health at Bournemouth University, UK. He was previously Secretary of FIAPAC, Secretary of BSACP, a Vice-President of FSRH, and Chair of the FSRH Clinical Effectiveness Committee.
Emeka Oloto, MBBS, FWACS, FRCOG, FFSRH, is Consultant Gynaecologist and Specialist in Sexual and Reproductive Health, Leicester, UK. He has extensive clinical experience of both medical and surgical abortion in multiple healthcare settings.
14th FIAPAC Conference on ‘Fertility Control into the Hands of Women’, Riga, Latvia, 8–10 September 2022
31 January 2022
Life for many people has changed over the past few years. The COVID-19 pandemic has confirmed how essential it is that women can easily access contraception and abortion services. This makes the theme of this conference, ‘Fertility control into the hands of women’’, particularly relevant. Topics include: abortion and contraception in the hands of women; pre-abortion investigations; surgical abortion; second trimester medical abortion; telemedicine and medical abortion; how to manage conscientious objection; simplifying access to contraception after pregnancy.
FIAPAC conferences are international meetings for all professionals whose work in reproductive health care focuses on abortion and family planning. This in-person conference with plenary sessions, workshops, free communications and poster presentations will be held in Riga, Latvia and includes sessions from IPPF, WHO and RCOG.
Abstract submission deadline: 1 May 2022.
Scientific programme/registration details: www.fiapac.org/en/program/23/riga-2022
‘Abortion Talk’: Destigmatising Abortion, One Conversation at a Time
31 January 2022
Abortion Talk sent out its first Newsletter in December 2021, and since its launch in Summer 2021, has been busy kickstarting its Helpline, website and growing its teams of amazing volunteers. A new Coordinator joined the Abortion Talk team in January 2022. Franki Appleton has been advocating for abortion rights since 2015, with experience working for an abortion provider, as well as a spending a couple of years on the Abortion Rights Executive Committee.
The team of 14 volunteers are upbeat and eager to take calls from anyone wanting to talk about abortion in any context. Callers to the helpline to date have expressed relief at being able to talk with someone who is kind and not judging, simply having a space to express their feelings.
Further information: https://www.abortiontalk.com/
Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare elearning Sessions Now Updated
31 January 2022
Health Education England elearning for Healthcare (HEE elfh) has worked with the Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Health (FSRH) to update two existing sessions in the Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare elearning programme.
The programme launched in September 2020 with 30 new sessions covering a host of topics including anatomy, contraception, sexually transmitted infections and early pregnancy. Each resource is aimed at a range of healthcare professionals, particularly those working in nursing and midwifery, to help them gain the necessary knowledge to successfully support patients with their sexual reproductive needs.
Sessions 17 and 18 have now been renamed 14 and 15 with new content added, as detailed below. The sessions are required for taking FSRH’s Letter of Competence (LoC) qualifications:
- Session 14: Additional Training in Subdermal Implants (SDIs). The resource outlines the advantages and disadvantages of an SDI and details the fitting and removal of SDIs, as well as any complications. It also explores the possible side effects and management of SDIs, including the use of local anaesthetics.
- Session 15: Additional Training in Intrauterine Techniques (IUT). This session provides evidence-based recommendations and good practice points on the insertion of intrauterine contraception (IUC) and techniques used within the UK.
Each resource within the programme is interactive and readily accessible anywhere at any time. Learners can access information, undertake self-assessments and view video clips, animation and real-life case studies to support their learning.
Healthcare professionals who have already completed sessions 17 and 18 have a 6-month grace period until 29 May 2022, which means these sessions will still be accepted as evidence supporting FSRH LoC application submissions made during this period. After 29 May 2022, sessions 17 and 18 will no longer be accepted and the new sessions must be completed.
Information about the elearning programme/to access the resources: https://www.e-lfh.org.uk/programmes/sexual-and-reproductive-healthcare/