By Felipe on September 24th, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post
Health care professionals share personal accounts, correct misconceptions about abortion advanced by Mississippi’s 15-week ban
On September 20, 2021, on behalf of a diverse group of health care professionals, leading medical organizations filed an amicus brief in the U.S. Supreme Court case, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. The case, brought by the Center for Reproductive Rights on behalf of Jackson Women’s Health Organization — the last abortion provider in Mississippi — challenges a blatantly unconstitutional ban on abortion care after 15 weeks of pregnancy that seeks to overturn nearly 50 years of precedent since Roe v. Wade. The Supreme Court recently announced it will hear oral arguments in the case on December 1, 2021.
The groups are Abortion Care Network, Bixby Center for Global Reproductive Health, Medical Students for Choice, National Abortion Federation, Physicians for Reproductive Health, and Planned Parenthood Federation of America. Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP is serving as pro-bono counsel.
The brief corrects misconceptions about abortion and includes first-hand accounts from trained, expert health care professionals who provide abortion — including physicians, clinic administrators, and medical students — on the devastating consequences abortion bans and restrictions have on patients across the country, including today in Texas. The brief was filed on the 20th day that Texas’s S.B. 8 — the radical “sue thy neighbor” law that has made abortion virtually inaccessible in the state — has been in effect.
Excerpts from health care providers featured in the brief are below.
Bhavik Kumar, M.D., M.P.H., Texas; Planned Parenthood provider“When Texas banned abortion in the spring of 2020, claiming falsely that abortion was a non-essential service, our clinic was forced to shut down four different times. I remember one patient who came to our clinic four times—we had to turn her away twice because of court orders that were issued while she was in our waiting room. I had patients who had to travel, in the middle of a pandemic, to as far as Chicago or Colorado, to access the care that we could have provided right here. And I had other patients who didn’t have the means or ability to travel out of state.”
Amna Dermish, M.D., Texas; Planned Parenthood provider“Just today, I had to turn away several patients who were too far along to obtain an abortion in Texas, including a patient who was less than six weeks pregnant. One curled up into a fetal position and started bawling hysterically. The others reacted more calmly but with no less devastation. I’m already dreading tomorrow, where I will yet again be forced to inflict pain on my patients as I deny them the care they need.”
Lori Williams, M.S.N., A.P.R.N., Arkansas; National Abortion Federation board chair“For me, abortion care is natural. It is a calling. It is my passion. People in the abortion community— people who feel just as passionately about their work as I do—have said to me, ‘You’ve chosen such a hard place to provide this care. You could do this in places where it wouldn’t be so stressful and difficult. Why Arkansas?’ But I always knew that I needed to do this work in Arkansas. And I still feel that way.”
Ying Zhang, M.D., Washington“I provide full-spectrum primary care. That includes taking care of babies, children, adults, and older people. And it includes taking care of people who are pregnant and want to be pregnant, and people who are pregnant and don’t want to be pregnant. With that perspective, it’s easy for me to see that abortion care should be a regular part of healthcare. It is care that people need to live their fullest and best lives.”
Ghazaleh Moayedi, D.O., M.P.H., Texas and Oklahoma; Physicians for Reproductive Health board member“The biggest obstacle is a lack of access to abortion clinics. In Texas, there are far more places that deceive people about how far along they are and what their options are than there are facilities providing abortion care.”
DeShawn Taylor, M.D., M.Sc., FACOG., Arizona; owner, founder, and physician at Desert Star Family Planning clinic and Abortion Care Network board member“Abortion saves lives. … The state talks about demeaning the medical profession. But what is the black eye on the profession? It’s not giving that person the procedure she needs and letting her die.”
Colleen McNicholas, D.O., M.S., Missouri, Illinois, and Oklahoma; Planned Parenthood provider “We are already seeing patients six days a week for nine hours a day. If we have to absorb even more patients from other states, that means longer delays. It is ironic that the politicians who are trying to restrict second trimester abortion procedures are the ones who will be responsible for pushing abortion later into gestation, including well into the second trimester.”
Jessica Mecklosky, medical student, Medical Students for Choice board of directors“These patients desperately need accurate information about their reproductive health, from sex education to abortion counselling, and they aren’t getting it.”
Dr. Kristina Tocce, M.D., M.P.H., Colorado; Planned Parenthood provider“In April 2020, after Texas banned abortion, our clinic in Colorado saw a massive increase in patients from Texas. Patients were literally fleeing the state to obtain the care they needed, in some cases driving 12 hours each way. … Many—in particular patients of color and patients I perceived to be undocumented—not only had to get time off work, find a ride, coordinate childcare, and arrange for housing and food while on the road.”
Yashica Robinson, M.D., Alabama; Physicians for Reproductive Health board member“As an abortion provider, I strive for integrity and to maintain the ethics of the profession. That means providing patients the care that they need. Like many abortion providers, that is one of the reasons I fight to provide this care. It is unethical to withhold care that a patient needs, sometimes so desperately. That is especially true with patients who have the fewest financial resources, the least amount of social support, and very little meaningful access to healthcare in general. They are the ones most affected by restrictions on abortion.”
Amy Hagstrom Miller, Texas, Maryland, Virginia, Indiana, and Minnesota; president of Whole Woman’s Health and Whole Woman’s Health Alliance“How people obtain abortions in this country is day and night depending on where they live, even though the abortion procedure and safety outcomes are the same everywhere. In some states, government-imposed barriers make it exceedingly difficult for people to access abortion and delay their care. In states where Medicaid and private insurance do not cover abortion, where patients must make two trips to the abortion facility, and where few clinics remain because of state restrictions, patients are more likely to be pushed into the second trimester. And for some patients, these state-imposed barriers make it impossible for them to access an abortion at all.”
Mugdha Mokashi, medical student, past-president of Medical Students for Choice board of directors “It means that where someone resides will directly impact their ability to live their lives on their own terms. And it will deepen inequities in our society.”
Mona Reis, Florida; founder of Presidential Women’s Center“We are about to put people into crisis—especially people with the least resources. I cannot believe this is still not settled, that women still don’t have access to comprehensive healthcare. To me, it is the most fundamental right we have. Having an abortion can be one of the most important decisions a woman will ever make.”
By Felipe on September 20th, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post
Misinformation continues to be a complex issue that creates unseen barriers to access and quality care in sexual and reproductive health (SRH). Finding ways to break down science-dense language and reproductive legislation in general terms was a challenge that one of our West Africa chapters decided to take on. In collaboration with the Population Reference Bureau, the MSFC chapter in Benin created a resource for a medical student on abortion and family planning. Our student leaders developed an infographic pamphlet to assist future healthcare workers in understanding why the gap for comprehensive sexual and reproductive healthcare needs to be filled. We are excited to share this new guide with you all!
The guide details a call to action to major leaders and key health agencies in Benin to increase support for safe abortion care, reduce abortion stigma, and implement programs that secure and support the equitable distribution of sexual and reproductive health preventative medicine. Most importantly, the guide uses data and statistics to raise awareness on the commitments to bodily autonomy, and women’s SRH outlined the keystone Maputo Protocol of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa.
We asked Bachirou, a student at the chapter, to share their thoughts on the deliverable. Here’s what they had to say:
“This booklet takes stock of abortion in Benin currently and traces all the laws on abortion in Benin; the disadvantages of clandestine abortion, the advantages of safe abortion, and some calls to action from each reader to commit to the reduction of mortality linked to clandestine abortion by clearly understanding the legislation on safe abortion in Benin.”
*Please note that this guide was made within the context of a Francophone population and is therefore only available in French.
Email students@msfc.org if you would like access to the PDF version of this deliverable.
By Felipe on September 07th, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post, Featured Article
One aspect that makes Medical Students for Choice unique—and amazing—is that our Board of Directors is required to be at least 51% medical students. Our Board president is always a medical student! This means that our constituency is driving the vision of the organization at all times. Here, three of our new Board members—Rose Al Abosy (US), Dango Mwambene (South Africa), and Hadiza Philippa Balaraba Thompson (Nigeria)—, and our new President, Kalin Gregory-Davis (US), share their passion, goals and dreams for MSFC.
Why is advocating for safe abortion and reproductive justice important to you?
Kalin
Before medical school, I worked at an abortion clinic and saw firsthand the incredible lengths that people had to go through to get an abortion in this country. I saw patients travel 15 hours by bus to get the care they needed. And it made me wonder what those who couldn’t travel were doing. When access to safe abortion is restricted, the most destitute are hit the hardest. As a future abortion provider, it feels incredibly important to change a medical system that preferentiates the most privileged. With the current political landscape and the foundations of racism in this country, I see my role as a future physician to be inextricably linked to advocacy for safe abortion and reproductive justice. It wouldn’t feel just to practice any other way.
Rose
Reproductive Justice, and, more generally, bodily autonomy, eludes those who are denied social, political, and economic power and resources. The most oppressed and marginalized among us experience the most barriers as they try to make decisions about their bodies and families, for themselves and their communities. This has a far-reaching impact: when individuals are denied the ability to exert reproductive agency, entire communities are denied the ability to determine their futures. That is why advocating for safe abortion and Reproductive Justice is so important to me: it is a profound way to push against structural oppression, and return to people the power to live in their bodies and within their communities on their own terms.
Dango
I’m a young, Black, bisexual, immigrant, African ciswoman. Reproductive Justice isn’t a concept I’m working towards for my future patients but for myself and my larger Black and Queer community. This work is deeply personal. As a domestic violence survivor, I can attest to the fact that feminism saved my life.
Hadiza
This is not a fight that started with me. It is one that has been happening long before my existence. Women forced against their will to keep pregnancies they felt incapable of keeping, shutting their mouths and nodding in humble submission to the patriarchs of their day to “keep the peace”. And we still suffer such in the present day. In desperation, many women lose their lives while seeking a way out—the unsafe way. I say, “my body, my choice, my life”. Advocating for safe abortion and Reproductive Justice is important to me because it’s more than a movement for me. It’s the way to do what my ancestors didn’t do, liberate the generations to come. The God I serve gave me a choice on whether or not to love Him. Who am I then to decide for another human being?
What goals/visions/wildest dreams, do you have for MSFC?
Kalin
My wildest dream is simply that MSFC remains open to growth, and changes with the world’s needs. I want us to not just be reactive but proactive as landscapes shift. We have the opportunity to keep our finger on the pulse and be visionaries in how to provide and expand abortion education across the globe. We have incredible student leaders who are committed to supporting one another and keeping abortion safe, legal, and accessible. I want students to feel inspired, to continue understanding their physician role as advocates, and to keep building movements committed to reproductive justice worldwide. This can look a lot of different ways, and my goal for MSFC is to keep an open and innovative mind for how to shift with what is most needed in any given context.
Rose
My wildest dream for MSFC is that we, as an organization, can fully embody and demonstrate exactly how impactful medical students can be at this level of training. To even be admitted into medical school is an immense privilege that comes with power, the extent of which is hard to imagine when the journey ahead is so daunting, and the sheer amount to learn is so humbling. But we do have a lot of power! Our experiences give us so much insight into how medicine can be improved to better serve the patients we care for, and further support a politics of liberation for all. My vision for MSFC is that we empower medical students to begin that difficult work early in their training, and strengthen their advocacy skillset throughout their training, to create providers that can bring an emancipatory practice of medicine into being.
Dango
My wildest dream for MSFC is global feminist takeover *mwahahahaha*. Jokes. My vision is a global feminist alliance that aims to institutionalize sexual and reproductive justice. I hope to be part of a generation of young doctors that takes back the evidence and narrative around sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and influences local policy and public perception around SRH. My wildest dream is creating a world that is fundamentally rooted in choice/autonomy, psychological and bodily integrity, and equitable access to the highest standard of living.
Hadiza
My biggest dream for MSFC is to penetrate the most restrictive countries of the world with our movement. And to ensure that at some point, they can see what we see and share our vision and goals. It is my hope that MSFC and its chapters will produce more healthcare professionals equipped to cater to their patients’ reproductive needs irrespective of their own moral values.
By Felipe on August 31st, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post, Featured Article
Italia Aranda Gonzalez, representing the Mariposa Fund based in New Mexico, generously presented to MSFC membership about the intersection of reproductive justice and immigrant rights. Italia Aranda Gonzalez is a DACA recipient and has worked tenaciously as a community organizer for over ten years addressing the various health disparities impacting undocumented communities across the country. Italia currently specializes as a pregnancy options counselor and abortion doula at a local reproductive health clinic. The Mariposa Fund provides financial support to pregnant people seeking abortion care who do not have access to other funding. Although New Mexico is one of the fifteen states that allows Medicaid recipients to use their coverage for abortion care, not all people living in New Mexico can access Medicaid. For example, undocumented immigrants cannot, but neither can legal non-citizens during a 5-year waiting period or Native Americans using the Indian Health Services (IHS) due to the Hyde amendment’s ban on federal funds for abortion services. The Mariposa Fund also provides funds for family planning services, giving more than $10,000 in long-acting reversible contraception (LARCs).
Italia taught us about how Immigrant justice is deeply rooted in racial justice, “fighting for equitable power, access, opportunities, treatment, impacts and outcomes” (Uprooting Racism). Undocumented immigrants have the right to live in peace, without fear of deportation. People have a right to migrate and deserve to seek better opportunities. Often, people are migrating because they are being displaced. All people have the right to choose if and when they parent and to raise their children in safe and healthy environments. Here is the crux of the intersection between immigrant rights and reproductive justice.
There are many reasons why undocumented immigrants may eschew seeking medical care. First, the medical system has a long history and continued medical abuse and coercion, resulting in forced sterilization and other trauma. Additionally, women and trans and gender non-conforming (GNC) peoples face heightened scrutiny of decisions they make for themselves, and this scrutiny is compounded for people of color.
Italia illustrated several areas within reproductive health and rights that need to be tackled to better align with reproductive justice.
Within the reproductive health framework (which focuses on service provision):
- Immigrants – especially undocumented women, are less likely to receive SRH services, including screenings for breast and cervical cancer, STI testing, family planning services
- GNC people face higher discrimination and higher rates of negative healthcare experiences
- Less access to culturally and linguistically appropriate care
- Less likely to report hostile work environments or unsafe working conditions
Within the reproductive rights framework (which focuses on the legal system):
- A lack of comprehensive laws that detail the rights of all individuals to access reproductive health services
- Politics and existing regulations are based on gendered, sexualized, and radicalized acts of dominance that occur everywhere, every day
- Reproductive rights need to address more than abortion. We need rights that protect and expand access to health education, family planning, safe and healthy living and work environments, right to be free from torture and violence
How can you help? Italia has some great suggestions!
- Learn about the policies in your state that support or prevent undocumented people from accessing care
- What policies are in place at your clinical sites and future practices to support people who can’t afford care?
- What policies are in place that would prevent someone from accessing care? Interpreters, language on consents forms, acceptance of federal IDs only?
- Is your clinical site a safe space for undocumented people? How would undocumented people know it is a safe space?
- Connect with local, state, and national organizations who are leading this work to access resources, training, and support:
By Felipe on August 16th, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post, Featured Article
Dr. Jean Berchmans Uwimana, an MSFC alum from University of Rwanda, uses creativity and community engagement to advocate for safe abortion. Here he talks about his personal journey from being staunchly anti-choice to dedicating his career to the advancement of safe abortion.
What made you decide to become involved with MSFC?
I started my undergraduate medical training at the University of Rwanda in 2013, coming from a very religious Catholic male high school where future priests are trained. I deviated and decided to do something different, which was a painful decision to perceive for many, including parents, classmates, and school representatives. They all had hope for me as a future priest who has been the head boy (to be a “head boy” in that school, they should see qualities of a future priest, to be able to lead other future priests). The headmaster (a priest) even decided to hire me as a teacher right after graduating before even the national examination results were out. This never happened in the history of this reputable school, but I had to take the job for one year. Besides, my family is very culturally and religiously conservative.
Going to medical school, I had to look for occupational activities that would keep me busy, and joining students’ associations was the only option for me. My friend Chris told me about a pro-choice chapter they were initiating. He invited me to join and just explore and then decide to join or not. Honestly, I joined this group with the ambition of challenging the members to show them how sinful they have become and tell them that if they continue that belief in safe abortion, in the end, they will only hear about heaven in the newspapers. I was a very judging person acting as if I owned heaven, but of course, this was influenced by the single-story background that left me with many similar stereotypes.
Dr. Jean Berchmans Uwimana, MSFC alum from University of Rwanda
The first day I joined the MSFC chapter at the University of Rwanda, we had an opportunity to visit a local clinic and learn from the stories about unsafe abortion cases. At that clinic, there was an infection ward with women and girls being treated for severe infection and other complications that resulted from unsafe abortion. Some of the cases made me cry. They were grievous and painful to perceive in the mind of a human being.
After the session, I went back home to my tiny room at the campus with the homework of answering the questions:
- “What matters between keeping my beliefs and saving the lives of women and girls?”
- “Why are only women and girls in that ward, by the way? Is it because their sin is stronger than men and boys during sexual intercourse?”.
The stories of victims of unsafe abortion increased my curiosity to explore the reality of women and girls having access to safe abortion. This curiosity boosted my interest in the MSFC chapter at the University of Rwanda. By the time I joined this chapter, it was a bit dormant, with members contextually fearing to talk about abortion publicly. Having become a student leader, I am happy that I helped save the chapter by making it more visible, having students at the medical school join, and connecting with local safe abortion activists. We participated in safe abortion strategic litigation advocacy and hosted two successive African Regional Meetings of Medical Students For Choice for the first time, which also benefited other African chapters and helped form new chapters.
Why is advocating for Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights, including safe abortion, important to you?
I strongly believe in people’s freedom and especially the freedom to choose if, when, and how many children to have and with whom to have children and the freedom to decide on issues relating to one’s own body. Locally, people undermine the power and benefits of this freedom due to stigma that obscures the reality of this freedom. I believe that people deserve sexual and reproductive lives free from violence, coercion, and discrimination and merit the full enjoyment and well-being of sexual and reproductive health. When I do advocacy, of course, I am supporting the voice of many to be heard, but I am also doing it for myself because I also deserve to exist in a world where people are happy with their choices, without any influence, because people are the best specialists of what is going on in their lives.
As a medical doctor, safe abortion advocacy has a lot to do with my career. I want to be able to provide services confidently without the fear of legal barricades. This would make me feel happy as the provider and make my clients happier. The reality is the country would also benefit in incredible ways. My colleague once denied service to a 17 years old girl who came to him begging for a safe abortion so she can focus on school and be able to meet her future full potential. She didn’t bring a parent or a guardian because she insisted she can’t disclose this to them at all. In our context, the doctor couldn’t provide the service even if he wanted to because it would be against the law and cause him to have at least three years of imprisonment. Two weeks later, the same doctor received the same client back in severe condition following an unsafe abortion that resulted in a total abdominal hysterectomy procedure at 17 years, which means this young girl won’t ever get pregnant. This made my colleague quit his medical career at 30 years old. Today he is a gym coach instead. This very same scenario may happen to anyone practicing under the same legal aspects of abortion, and that’s why safe abortion advocacy means a lot to me.
Dr. Uwimana speaking to a group of medical students about the SAVE (Safe Abortion Videos Edutainment) project.
Why was it important to you to be educated in safe abortion/family planning?
Being educated in safe abortion and family planning, in general, has given me the opportunity to destroy related negative stereotypes and beliefs that would put a client in danger. I also had a chance to explore the reality of this component which has given me an opportunity to be more contributive to the society around me as I provide services confidently to beneficiaries. If it weren’t for the education that I received through the Medical Students For Choice, I probably wouldn’t be able to think about the long-term sustainability of the education we receive from both students’ to providers’ perspectives. This perspective has given me the occasion to initiate Medical Doctors For Choice in Rwanda. This network aims at transferring the knowledge to service delivery without biases.
Moreover, the education I received about family planning helped me think about creating a gender, quality, and youth-friendly edutainment platform dubbed “Flavours of Family Planning or The Kitchen Show.” This show employs kitchen materials for hands-on simulation to provide gender-friendly information to men and boys about their engagement in family planning. I decided to involve the kitchen to decentralize Family Planning science to the level of understanding of many and as a gender norm transformation approach since cooking in our local context has been for so long admitted as a female gender role. I am happy about this community engagement show because even if it was initially designed to engage men and boys, upon execution, I keep realizing that it embraces the attention of all genders.
Dr. Uwimana presenting one of the Flavours of Family Planning videos.
What do you do for fun?
Primarily, I love teaching other people about humanity or talking about the value of equality. Secondly, I enjoy cooking, sometimes I even feel like cooking for people I don’t necessarily know. Thirdly, I love sports, especially swimming.
By Felipe on August 09th, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post, Featured Article
One of the most meaningful ways MSFC chapters create change on their campuses is through working to improve their school’s curriculum when it comes to abortion and family planning content (and sometimes more). On the Spring 2021 Student Leader Survey, over half of respondents were either currently working on or very interested in starting to work on curriculum reform. Check out some of the ways chapters are changing what medical students learn about abortion and family planning on their campus:
Giving Feedback to Admin:
We met with faculty after our reproductive unit and delivered our structured feedback of components we liked / areas of improvement within the curriculum.Kaiser Permanente School of Medicine
Last semester, MSFC teamed up with other organizations to send out a school-wide survey gauging interest in a new curricular thread that would focus on topics including reproductive justice and the medicine of abortion. We have since analyzed the data and are in the process of sharing it with the administration.University of Cincinnati
[Our chapter’s president] is on the school Task Force on Inclusion and Bias to evaluate repro/genitourinary unit materials.Northwestern University
We have members serving on the board for Medical Gross Anatomy and Endo/Repro course reform.Texas A&M College of Medicine
Our school is developing a completely new M1/M2 curriculum, so we are trying to get involved and support more abortion and reproductive health education in the early parts of this new curriculum. Our first step was to send out a survey to medical students to tell us if they think they are receiving adequate repro/sex/abortion health education. Once we obtain that data, we will go to our larger campus curriculum reform team and present to them why we should increase education surrounding these topics.Medical College of Wisconsin
Adding (Incorporating/Introducting) Electives, Lectures, and More:
We helped to start a medication abortion doula program this year. If successful, it has the potential to be incorporated into the first-year curriculum.University of Hawaii
Some members of the chapter are working on a Reproductive Justice lecture for clinical clerkship students. There will be a pre- and post-lecture survey for students to fill out. It is intended for 3rd year students about to start their OB/GYN rotations.
Brown University
We are currently developing a pilot program of a few lectures (conscientious refusal, abortion counseling, trauma-informed care, etc.) to present over a few lunch hours. After building upon this, we will introduce it to the administration to incorporate more broadly.
University of Oklahoma
Our chapter is working to establish an Advanced Competency in Family Planning and Reproductive Health that will include 120 hours of didactic and clinical training in Family Planning and Reproductive Health for fourth-year medical students.
Ohio State University
Changing Course Materials:
We are trying to incorporate a clinical case that deals with abortion because we have been told there is ‘no room in the curriculum.’ Hopefully by doing so we can promote open, comfortable conversations about abortion.Augusta University
We are trying to expand opportunities to discuss abortion and contraception, perhaps in ‘small groups,’ so that students can actively participate. We have found [values clarification workshops] an effective forum to do so, and hope to have some implemented within our curriculum more formally.Emory University
Current and former MSFC leaders are actively working with the director of the Reproduction Module to incorporate comprehensive reproductive justice into the curriculum. For example, our school didn’t teach anything about abortion until the last couple of years. This past year, there were efforts to have discussions on abortion, but they were muddled by a lack of representation and an overrepresentation of anti-choice bias.
[A chapter leader] is working on reforming our school’s curricular inclusion of Black maternal health issues and reproductive justice. [Another chapter leader] is helping with that effort and working on reforming LGBTQ+ inclusion in our education.University of Colorado
By Felipe on August 02nd, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post
Last year, our MSFC chapter was presented with an exciting opportunity to begin a medication abortion doula training program under the guidance of Dr. Marit Pearlman Shapiro, a then-first-year family planning fellow. Dr. Pearlman Shapiro began a surgical abortion doula program as a medical student at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in 2013, in which medical students were trained to provide emotional, physical, and informational support throughout a patient’s abortion procedure. She proposed starting a similar program in Hawaii, and we were able to recruit 12 medical students during our first semester!
We held our very first training session in January 2021. We provided an overview of medication abortions and contraception, discussed challenging scenarios, and participated in a values clarification session led by 3 of MSFC’s experienced student leaders. As tele-doulas, we have had the chance to support patients through the bleeding and cramping of medication abortions, encourage women feeling weighted down by religious beliefs, and provide comfort for those facing their abortions alone. Of the 194 patients offered this service in the past months, 37 (19%) were interested in participating in the program. All were contacted by one of our medical student tele-doulas by text message for support during their medication abortion.
Dr. Pearlman Shapiro and the students who took part on the The Doula Project
Our goals for The Doula Project have been two-fold. First, we wanted to provide support for women undergoing medication abortions, which can be both emotionally and physically taxing. This was especially important to us as the COVID-19 pandemic imposed significant social isolation. The majority of trained abortion providers in Hawaii are concentrated in urban areas such as Honolulu, making access particularly limited for neighbor island patients. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic created another obstacle for women to access in-person abortion services. Medication abortions provided remotely via telehealth have provided a solution to both of these problems. Second, we wanted to present medical students with a unique opportunity to interact with patients during a time when clinical experiences were also limited. We hoped that through these interactions, medical students would strengthen their knowledge of abortions, build clinical skills in communication and patient advocacy, and increase their comfort and willingness to provide abortion care in the future.
With a promising first semester, we are now planning a second training session this Fall and intend to sustain The Doula Project as a student-driven initiative through future classes. We also hope to share what we’ve learned with other chapters who are interested in starting a doula program of their own.
If you’d like to connect with Morgan or Dr. Pearlman Shapiro for more information, reach out to students@msfc.org.
By Felipe on July 26th, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post, Featured Article
In the US, abortion restrictions are mounting, and threats to abortion access are more significant than ever. In many parts of the world, abortion remains illegal, increasing the risk of unsafe abortion. No matter where we are, we struggle against systems of colonialism, religious imperialism, and patriarchy.
Abortion activists in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland organized, agitated, and campaigned for years to bring safe, legal abortion to their communities. Finally, in 2018, the Republic of Ireland voted—overwhelmingly—to legalize abortion. Northern Ireland followed suit in 2019. A panel of Irish and Northern Irish activists who helped shepherd legal abortion shared their experience organizing in traditionally religious, conservative areas and their work in expanding abortion access. JoAnne Neary from the Abortion Rights Campaign; Jamie Canavan, Aisling Hayes, and Maraleeze Keane from Galway Pro-Choice; and MSFC alumna Jill McManus from Alliance for Choice discussed their work in chipping away at the oppressive systems that harm their communities.
Tips for starting conversations with conservative communities.
- Meet people where they are at and understand they aren’t coming from a bad place. They aren’t against human rights, but they’ve been socialized to think anti-abortion is the most compassionate choice.
- Reframe the conversation. This debate isn’t about the difference between abortion and no abortion, it’s the difference between safe abortion and unsafe abortion.
- Be patient. Give people time and space. The levels of indoctrination and anti-abortion rhetoric we’ve gone through from a very young age can take a long time to undo.
- Give people more credit and don’t make assumptions. We assumed things about the older communities and danced around the topic. These people have seen some stuff. They have seen the trauma of unwanted pregnancies. They’ve witnessed pregnant people leave their homes and never return. You can’t judge people’s attitudes until you have a conversation.
- Use the word abortion more.
- Remember being religious and being pro-choice are not mutually exclusive.
- People often have a list of arguments. Break it up and confront one.
- Always being visible. Wear a badge on your bag or jacket when you go out. People will ask and start the conversation themselves. They are the simplest actions, but they help keep the issue in people’s minds. It felt lonely to campaign in rural areas, and visibility can give sense of community and security.
Medical school is often hierarchical and conservative. It is a challenging place to speak out against the status quo and advocate for change. Here are Jill’s tips for being a pro-choice activist in medical school.
- Finding allies in medical school may seem daunting, but it’s essential. Jill talked about abortion to anyone and everyone, and even if they were hesitant at first, they found her when they were ready to engage in this work.
- Reach out to your local community organizations and feminist collectives. They can offer support outside of the mainstream medical system and keep you motivated.
- The desires of feminist activists tend to be far more radical than the people in medicine. They are very good at making you aware of patients’ stories, how the medical system has negatively impacted them, and the trauma patients experienced. It’s important to stay aware and not dismiss the patient experience. It’s also motivating to be a better doctor and patient advocate.
Although gaining legal abortion services for the first time is a monumental win, it’s clear there is more work to be done. Here are our panelists’ ideas on how to keep motivated.
“Yesterday, I dared to struggle. Today I dared to win.” – Bernadette Devlin McAliskey
- This is a life-long fight. So do what you can, when you can.
- You may not have a big reaction to each event, but if five people show up, they can tell five more people. So, every person who hears your message is victory.
- You gain more activists the more educational events you can put on. People leave feeling empowered and want to join the bigger cause.
- It’s easy to feel like you aren’t doing enough, but by doing what you can, you are making a difference.
- Find your people. Finding that community is a comforting place and empowering place to be.
- You don’t have to look too far to find badass feminists to inspire you. (If you are reading this, you are probably one of them).
- Be kind to yourselves.
- Talk about abortion unashamedly.
- People remember their interactions with doctors. Being a doctor is one of the most trusted professions. You have a lot of influence and a lot of personal power. So every single interaction is an opportunity to make a person feel cared for, respected, valued, and listened to.
By Felipe on July 19th, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post
Oluwadusin Adesopo, 5th year medical student at Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria
What drove you to get involved with MSFC?
One thing that drove me to get involved with MSFC is way the organization works to create more awareness about safe abortion and reproductive health as a whole.
What has been your favorite event/chapter activity so far?
My favorite chapter activity so far would be the world contraceptive day events, we really did created more awareness about safe sex and MSFC OAU (Obafemi Awolowo University) Chapter. It was a dream come true. Big thanks to the amazing chapter executives!
Do you have a favorite Reproductive Rights/Reproductive Justice/Social Justice quote?
“Your body, your choice.”
What first inspired you to become a doctor?
I won’t say “what” but rather say “who”. My mum did inspired me to become a doctor after she explained to me all what she went through before getting a good reproductive health service at the time of my birth.
This is something that needs to be worked on. I’m glad I’m walking along that path.
If you weren’t a future doctor, what career would you choose?
Maybe a social media manager.
By Felipe on July 12th, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post
This year has presented a lot of challenges. We are still in the throes of a global pandemic, with schools being disrupted or reconfigured. In addition, many of our chapters around the world operate in areas that witnessed heightened political unrest, causing additional safety concerns and logistical barriers. Whether due to intentional Internet restrictions or infrastructure realities, a considerable part of MSFC’s network could not organize web-based events for their chapters. However, MSFC chapters overcame these barriers and more to deliver abortion and family planning education to their classmates and sustain a growing community of pro-choice activists.
From Peru to Poland, Nepal to Nigeria MSFC chapters worldwide turned it out during the first half of 2021. We are so proud of you all!
