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CHAPTER 1:

III - Theoritical Framework

Theoretical framework for evaluating safe abortion programs (Benson 2005): This figure describes
Benson's framework for evaluating safe abortion programs. Source for this figure is reference [17].

(image)

Benson [17] provides a framework positing that abortion law and policy reform has maximal impact on
abortion-related maternal mortality when it occurs in conjunction with other supportive programs and
services (Figure 1). According to this framework, utilization of safe abortion services, and, ultimately, a
reduction in maternal mortality, is best achieved when liberalized abortion policies are supplemented
with improved availability and distribution of safe abortion services across a population. Women's
knowledge of and attitudes toward abortion, as well as confidence in obtaining services and access to
contraception, can also enhance utilization of safe abortion services. The framework suggests that only
when these elements coordinate with a loosening of abortion restrictions can real impacts in unsafe
abortion and abortion-related mortality be seen. Although Benson's framework provides a theoretical
foundation for the paper, this study is not intended to specifically test the components of the model.

IV - Signifinance of the study

In 2008, an estimated 1,000 maternal deaths in the Philippines were attributable to abortion
complications.13 According to the Philippines Department of Health, the country’s maternal mortality
ratio increased from 161 to 221 deaths per 100,000 live births between 2006 and 2011.25 This ratio is
well above the government’s Millennium Development Goal 5 target of 52 maternal deaths per 100,000
live births for 2015.26 The Department of Health acknowledges that high maternal mortality is
preventable through the provision of effective family planning methods to combat unmet need,
particularly among poor women, and that access to antenatal care and to care for pregnancy- and
abortion-related complications would also help to reduce maternal mortality.

Physical complications are not the only consequence of unsafe abortion. The social and economic costs
of clandestine abortion and postabortion care are substantial, to both individual women and the health
system as a whole. Because abortion is illegal, many providers charge high fees to compensate for the
clandestine nature of the procedure,4,5 and hence obtaining a relatively safe abortion in a clinic is out of
reach for the average Filipino woman. Many women with an unintended pregnancy therefore resort to
cheaper and often less safe methods, which may result in complications that ultimately incur significant
costs to the woman and to the health care system. Recent costing studies of postabortion care in
countries with highly restrictive abortion laws have found that the costs to the health systems, including
drugs, supplies and staff time, are substantial.32–34

In addition to the direct costs of care for abortion-related complications, another cost is the time that
women spend in recovering from injuries and ill health. During recovery, women are prevented from
fulfilling other responsibilities, such as making a living, attending school and caring for their families.4,35
The cost of this lost time, when added to the health care costs of treating complications, means that
unsafe abortion takes a substantial toll on society as a whole, as well as on individuals and families.

V - Purpose of the paper

This study draws on in-depth interviews and focus group discussions with young adults in a metropolitan
area of the Philippines to examine perceptions and practices of illegal abortion. Study participants
indicated that unintended pregnancies are common and may be resolved through eventual acceptance
or through self-induced injury or ingestion of substances to terminate the pregnancy. Despite the
illegality of abortion and the restricted status of misoprostol, substantial knowledge and use of the drug
exists. Discussions mirrored broader controversies associated with abortion in this setting. Abortion was
generally thought to invoke gaba (bad karma), yet some noted its acceptability under certain
circumstances. This study elucidates the complexities of pregnancy decisionmaking in this restrictive
environment and the need for comprehensive and confidential reproductive health services for Filipino
young adults.
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CHAPTER 4:

1. Summary of Findings

It is true that pregnancy and motherhood require a lot of maturity. It becomes necessary for a mother to
be responsible enough to parent and nurture the child as well as take care of herself and her needs.
With teenage pregnancies, this maturity and responsibility are not present. The whole idea of teenage
pregnancy is a ‘child giving birth to a child’, and this indicates the maturity level of the teenage mother.

With a lack of family support, an adolescent mother will have the added responsibility of raising her child
single-handedly because, in most of these cases, her partner will not be supportive too. Raising a child
alone, while still taking care of her studies, can either impact her career and future or her child’s care.

Teenage abortion is a controversial subject and a pregnant teen considering abortion often finds herself
in a difficult situation where either of her decisions – abortion or choosing to give birth, will leave an
everlasting impact on her life. While an abortion may seem to be the only way out for pregnant
teenagers who do not have financial and family support, the fact remains that an abortion can leave
them emotionally unstable for a long time, sometimes for life.

2. Conclusion

In general, it can be concluded that the initiative on the determinants and consequences of induced
abortion has shown some important patterns. For example, induced abortion is not restricted to
adolescents but occurs also within marriage to limit family size. Induced abortion is prevalent both
where family planning services are available and contraceptive prevalence is high as well as where family
planning is not common, but for different reasons. In the former, motivation to limit family size is high
and women would use any option if contraception fails or an unwanted pregnancy occurs. In the latter
case, induced abortion forms part of a mix of incipient fertility regulation alternatives, most of which are
traditional and of little effectiveness but including some use or improper use of modern methods. Few
abortion seekers, and among them even fewer adolescents, were using a modern contraceptive at the
time the pregnancy started. High use of traditional methods in some countries leads to abortion as
women/couples fail to follow proper instructions with regards to the safe period. Unsafe clandestine
abortions are more likely to be sought by poorer women and by adolescents. The findings of this
research are increasingly being used to question the legal status of abortion in countries where the law is
restrictive, or to strengthen family planning efforts in order to reduce abortion incidence.

3. Recommendation

In the Philippines, women’s willingness to seek abortions from untrained providers and inunhygienic
places, using techniques such as painful massages and ingestion of bitter herbs, andto try again and
again when a method fails, makes it clear that legal barriers are not preventingabortions from taking
place.What will reduce abortion is helping women and couples get better information aboutsexuality,
reproductive health and contraception, and better access to modern contraceptives, sothey can prevent
unintended pregnancies.For national, regional and local policymakers, and government agencies at all
levels, thismeans taking the necessary steps to address this problem.

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