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GPs say uncertainty remains despite new abortion guidelines

John O'Kelly, of the Royal College of General Practitioners said `uncertainty still remains' despite new guidance
John O'Kelly, of the Royal College of General Practitioners said `uncertainty still remains' despite new guidance John O'Kelly, of the Royal College of General Practitioners said `uncertainty still remains' despite new guidance

FAMILY doctors have asked for "clear guidance" on the termination of pregnancy after highlighting continued uncertainty in information finally issued by the Department of Health following long delays.

The new guidelines appear to offer a more liberal interpretation of how the law stands, with more emphasis on clinician judgement rather than a psychiatric assessment and relaxing the requirement to report an abortion has taken place in order to make allowance for staff to respect patient confidentiality.

However, John O'Kelly, Northern Ireland chair of the Royal College of General Practitioner, said although the revised termination of pregnancy guidance "is a step forward for helping family doctors to provide compassionate care to women facing crisis pregnancies and provides improved clarity to GPs..., uncertainty still remains around particular aspects".

"It is essential that GPs have clear guidance to follow to allow us to advise, support and care for patients appropriately, whilst remaining soundly within the boundaries of law," Dr O'Kelly said.

"The law relating to the termination of pregnancy here continues to differ from that in the rest of the UK and it is important to highlight that this guidance does not change the current law.

"It is vital that all issues around termination of pregnancy are fully addressed and RCGP NI also welcomes the formation of a working group which will look at other areas such as pregnancy affected by fatal foetal abnormality."

The guidelines explicitly acknowledge that if a woman attends hospital having taken the abortion pill the symptoms are the same as a `natural' miscarriage and have been interpreted as ushering in a 'don't ask, don't tell' approach.

Despite a recent High Court ruling, under the guidance, fatal foetal abnormality on its own still does not constitute a case for termination, with cases needing to be considered on the grounds of the woman's mental health as before.