More British doctors refusing abortions

April 16, 2007

A growing number of doctors in England and Wales are refusing to perform abortions, The Independent reported Monday.

Ann Furedi, chief executive of British Pregnancy Advisory Service told the newspaper many doctors feel, since contraception is freely available through the National Health Service, there was "no excuse" for women who got pregnant accidentally.

"There is a real crisis looming," Furedi told The Independent. "Unless we can address the problem and motivate doctors to train in abortion, we may well face a situation in five years' time in which women's access to abortion is severely restricted."

The report said the growing number of doctors refusing to perform abortions partly reflects "the dinner party test" in which gynecologists who specialize in fertility treatment are almost universally revered but no one boasts of being an abortionist.

Some 190,000 abortions are carried out each year in England and Wales and the National Health Service pays for 80 percent of them, the newspaper said.

Copyright 2007 by United Press International


print this article email this article download pdf blog this article bookmark this article     Stumble it Digg this share on Facebook retweet share on Reddit add to delicious
Rate this story - 4.3 /5 (7 votes)


April 16, 2007 all stories

Comments: 0

4.3 /5 (7 votes)
  • Stumble this up

  • Digg this

  • share this

  • hide
  • Related Stories

  • Just a numbers game? Making sense of health statistics
    created Oct 10, 2008 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0
  • Breast Cancer Physicians Have Limited Access to Trained Interpreters
    created 21 hours ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0
  • AMA votes to seek repeal of 'don't ask,don't tell'
    created Nov 10, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0
  • The missionary doctor
    created Nov 10, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0
  • In Europe, most swine flu shots by invitation only
    created Nov 06, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0



  • hide
  • Relevant PhysicsForums posts

Other News

Cigarette Smoking

US adult smoking rate rises slightly

Medicine & Health / Health

created 52 minutes ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

(AP) -- Cigarette smoking rose slightly for the first time in almost 15 years, dashing health officials' hopes that the U.S. smoking rate had moved permanently below 20 percent.


CDC: Swine flu has sickened 22 million in 6 months

Medicine & Health / Diseases

created 13 minutes ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

(AP) -- Government health officials say swine flu has sickened about 22 million Americans since April.


Study provides first clear idea of how rare bone disease progresses

Study provides first clear idea of how rare bone disease progresses

Medicine & Health / Research

created 3 minutes ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

An international team of scientists, led by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, is taking the first step in developing a treatment for a rare genetic disorder called fibrodysplasia ...


More pain means real gain in complex regional pain syndrome treatment

Medicine & Health / Other

created 3 minutes ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

The saying "more pain, more gain" may be true for those already in terrible pain due to a chronic and debilitating condition, contrary to received wisdom. For those with Type I Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS), working ...


Surgeon 'gluing' the breastbone together after open-heart surgery

Surgeon 'gluing' the breastbone together after open-heart surgery

Medicine & Health / Other

created 23 minutes ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

An innovative method is being used to repair the breastbone after it is intentionally broken to provide access to the heart during open-heart surgery. The technique uses a state-of-the-art adhesive that rapidly ...