Postabortion Care for Adolescents

"Between 2 million and 4 million adolescents are estimated to have unsafe abortions (either induced or spontaneous) each year, accounting for an estimated 14% of the unsafe abortions performed in developing countries. To determine how facilities can better meet adolescents’ needs for postabortion care (PAC), EngenderHealth conducted studies at hospitals in the Dominican Republic and Malawi examining the experiences of adolescents who received PAC services and providers who deliver them. Specifically, the researchers sought to determine what problems adolescents face in obtaining PAC, these adolescents’ perceptions of the care they receive, how PAC for adolescents can be improved, and what information and services adolescent PAC clients want and need."

Published by EngenderHealth, this 9-page publication summarises the results of those studies and provides recommendations for improving adolescent PAC services. It also highlights some challenges to adolescents’ ability to prevent pregnancy and barriers to quality PAC services for adolescents.