What is abortion?

In very simple terms, abortion is when a pregnancy is ended so that it does not result in the birth of a child.

It can be categorised into: 

  • Voluntary or induced abortion: when the pregnancy is ended on purpose under the supervision of a trained medical practitioner, and
  • Involuntary abortion or miscarriage: when the ending of pregnancy was unintended but happened because of reasons not under the pregnant persons control.

You will find that whenever we talk about abortions on this website, we mean induced abortions. Induced abortions can be:

  • Safe abortions: when an abortion carried out by a trained and licensed professional in a sterile environment using appropriate methods, and
  • Unsafe abortions: when an abortion procedure is a) done with non-medical equipment like sticks, pens, or any sharp object; b) performed by untrained people like quacks, friends, family members or even MBBS doctors who do not have the license to do so, or 3) carried out in a non-sterile environment like home or clinics which do not have an approval to carry out medical termination of pregnancy.

Abortion is surrounded by social taboos that create an environment of fear and stigma. This makes abortion a contentious issue. This stigma is further reinforced by legal and institutional barriers, which restrict access to abortions. As a result, individuals seeking abortion have no choice but to turn to unconventional and often unsafe means of abortion. When we say ‘unsafe’, how unsafe do we mean? An unsafe abortion can be fatal to the pregnant person and non-fatal complications range from incomplete abortions to sepsis and trauma to the reproductive organs. 

One might come to the conclusion that the best way to safeguard people from the health risks associated with unsafe abortions is to ban abortions entirely, but this conflicts with ground realities. Making abortions illegal does not mean that people will stop seeking abortions altogether. It only means that they are forced to seek more unsafe abortions. On the other hand, almost every abortion-related death and complication could be prevented through comprehensive sexuality education (CSE), use of effective contraception, provisions for safe, legal, induced abortions, and timely care for complications. This is why it is so important to have these discussions.