Abortion in Bahrain compared to Abortion in India

Legal parameters for abortions have limited the options for women throughout the world when continuing an ongoing pregnancy is not what they want or is not their preference.

Since the legal rules governing abortions are varied in all countries, women in different countries have different options when it comes to terminating an unwanted pregnancy.

Living in Bahrain with limited abortion options:

Bahrain is one such country in the Persian Gulf where many women resort to unsafe abortions due to the unavailability of legal choices and risk their lives.

Besides legal rules, there are society restrictions, availability of healthcare facilities and many other concerns that govern a woman’s abortion options.

Legal restrictions:

Legal limitations that restrict women’s choice for abortion in Bahrain are:

  • Abortion in Bahrain is illegal. 
  • It is legal only to save the life of the pregnant woman.

In the aforementioned case also, it has to be decided by consultant doctors (three) authorized to practice in Bahrain that continuation of pregnancy is threatening the life of the woman.

Even in the cases where abortion is legal, approval of the person in charge of the pregnant woman is sought.

  • Self-induced abortions are liable to punishment and the pregnant woman is subject to six months of imprisonment. 

If you are a resident of Bahrain, its citizen or belong to an ex-pat population, you cannot obtain a legal abortion in Bahrain in events:

  • If your pregnancy has resulted as a result of contraceptive failure (which is very common and yet women do not have a legal option for unwanted pregnancy abortion in Bahrain).
  • If your pregnancy is a result of rape or incest. This increases the physical and mental trauma of the woman since the pregnancy is unintentional and the woman’s suffering intensifies. Moreover, the problem enhances when it happens to unmarried girls.
  • If the pregnancy is unwanted due to social or economic reasons. Women may fear the future of the child when they may not be able to rear him/her due to economic conditions. Some women feel they should not bring a child to life if they cannot provide them with necessities and hence, they seek abortions for unwanted pregnancies. But the misery is that they cannot avail themselves of legal abortion in Bahrain.
  • In events where prenatal scan and other diagnostic tests have revealed fetal impairment, which means in cases where the child will be born with physical or mental deformities or with a disease which is either not curable or the child’s life expectancy is small.
  • If the woman is intellectually unfit or has a cognitive disability, even then the abortion in Bahrain is illegal and cannot be obtained.
  • If the physical or mental health of the woman is not good, still she has no option for legal abortion in Bahrain.
  • Even if the pregnancy continuation poses a threat to the physical health of the woman, she has no legal abortion option open in Bahrain.

Does any of the case sound similar? Or you or your friend is going through a similar situation and seeking a safe, legal and confidential abortion?

If yes, then this post is for you. Keep reading further to know how and where can you obtain a safe, legal, confidential and painless abortion in Manama, Bahrain.

Social stigma:

It is not a nice reality when it comes to how society perceives abortion as a decision and most of the times when associated with unmarried girls or widows or other women who get pregnant out of their marriages.

With abortion being banned in the country, fear of being judged and face adversity at the hands of family and society leave such women with very limited choices.

Lack of facilities:

It has been observed that in Bahrain, many women seek illegal and unsafe abortion options, especially by using abortion pills. But what they do not know is that they are risking their lives and the consequences ahead can be serious.

If you too are thinking of obtaining abortion pills illegally, then please refrain from indulging in the same. You are not only going illegally, but you are risking your entire life. You are not aware of the complications and ill-effects of self-administering abortion pills without a registered practitioner’s prescription.

A registered gynaecologist prescribes abortion pills only if he/she deems them fit for you and your health while also considering a successful abortion in mind.

Do not get disheartened with the fact that you cannot obtain a legal and safe abortion in Bahrain just because you want it for any personal or medical reasons. You do have options. Release your anxiety, sit back and relax for a while and make a wise decision.

Here are your abortion options on foreign land that are safe, legal as well as confidential. 

Abortion in India as an option compared to abortion in Bahrain:

While seeking a healthy method of terminating an unwanted pregnancy, it is very clear that in Bahrain, it is not possible legally. But adopting an illegal means and risking your lives is also not an intelligent choice.

To healthily solve the problem, women from countries like Bahrain, UAE, Dubai, Ajman, Sharjah, Kuwait, Ras-Al-Khaimah, Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, Fujairah or the like often travel to India for obtaining a safe abortion.

Liberal reproductive rights, respect for women choices and availability of world-class medical facilities make India a favourite abortion destination and women successfully and happily obtain the same.

Circumstances in which abortion is legal in India as compared to abortion in Manama, Bahrain:

In India, abortion laws are equivalent and the same for every woman irrespective of her citizenship and hence, you can avail a legal abortion in India in cases:

  • If you are pregnant due to contraceptive failure. This is the most common reason for obtaining abortions not only in India but throughout the world. But not all countries permit abortion legally in case the pregnancy has resulted due to contraceptive failure. Another big thing is that you do not have to prove or even reveal which contraceptive method did you adopt that failed.
  • If your pregnancy is an outcome of rape/incest. Sadly, in Bahrain, you cannot obtain a legal abortion for this case.
  • If the ongoing pregnancy poses threat to the life of the woman.
  • If the woman is not capable of childbearing due to retarded physical or mental capacities. Again, abortion in Bahrain is not available in these events.
  • In case fetal deformities have been detected. In these cases also, Bahrain treats abortion as illegal.

Other benefits of abortion in India in comparison with Bahrain:

  • Time range (Gestation age):

In India, legal abortions can be obtained in a wide window period, with the difference being in the method used to terminate an unwanted pregnancy.

Abortion in India is legal up to 20 weeks of gestation period in normal circumstances and up to 24 weeks in special cases. 

  • Consent for abortion:

In India, only a woman’s consent is required for the abortion procedure. Whereas in Bahrain, abortion is illegal at first and is legal only to save a woman’s life. And in these events too, consent of both the woman and the partner is required to perform the abortion procedure.

  • Doctor’s consultation:

In Bahrain, in events where abortion is legal to save the woman’s life, it has to be justified by consultation of three physicians or gynaecologists that the ongoing pregnancy can endanger the woman’s life.

Whereas, in India, only a single gynaecologist can confirm your eligibility for abortion provided the abortion is performed at a certified abortion clinic in India and your pregnancy has not exceeded 20 weeks.

Consent of two medical practitioners is required for conducting abortions when the pregnancy has exceeded 20 weeks but is less than 24 weeks in special circumstances like that of fetal anomalies.

Travelling to Bangalore, India for abortion: Your best choice:

What makes India an ideal place to visit has already been discussed on different grounds. The other benefits include it being located not far off and you can arrive here via a short flight.

There are flight options with a single stop and also non-stop flights from Bahrain to Bangalore and vice versa. Non-stop flight may take nearly six hours and the one with a stop will take around nine hours.

Coming to why Bangalore can be your perfect choice for abortion in India as compared to abortion in Bahrain, there are several things:

  • Abortion in Bangalore, India is legal under the circumstances discussed above.
  • Bangalore is a metropolitan city furnished with admirable world-class medical facilities and people from many nearby and even far off countries visit here as a part of medical tourism.

One of the biggest medical reason is to avail a legal, safe and confidential abortion which is not even an option in many countries worldwide.

  • American Hospital Bangalore (AHB) located in Bangalore is a favourite and popular amongst women throughout the world for safe, legal and painless abortions.

Abortion in Bangalore at American Hospital Bangalore for women from Bahrain:

The first thing for any woman seeking an abortion is to be in a stress-free state. Though it sounds weird considering your situation and concerns, yet we say so since only a relaxed mind can make wise decisions. In a hurry or panic, you may look ahead for illegal means which are unsafe and can land you into grave complications, the gravity of which is far beyond your estimation.

So, you must opt for a safe abortion since safe abortions set women safety the priority.

Location:

American Hospital Bangalore (AHB) located in the Bangalore city of Karnataka state in India is efficiently connected with other Indian states at the domestic level and many countries like Bahrain through the international airport. So, access to the hospital is very easy whether you visit directly to Bangalore or even if you take a flight to any other international airport in India.

Certified abortion clinic:

It is a certified abortion clinic which means it is equipped with all the essential requirements for conducting safe and legal abortions.

There is difference between certified MTP centres and certified abortion clinics. All MTP centres are not abortion clinics but all abortion clinics are certified MTP centres. The difference lies in the methods of abortion available.

At a certified MTP centre only, abortion is legal only with the use of safe abortion pills, i.e., the Medical Method of abortion. And hence, it has the name, Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP). But at a certified abortion clinic, abortion facilities are available for performing abortions by all the recommended methods for abortion by the World Health Organization (WHO).

For your kind reference, AHB is equipped with all the facilities and necessary pieces of equipment, doctors, gynaecologists, nurses, paramedical staff and even a diagnostic lab that makes it a stop solution for any woman who wants a successful abortion in a single day.

Comprehensive abortion care (CAC):

CAC refers to the guidelines recommended by the WHO for conducting abortions. In light of the fact, that unsafe abortions are a leading cause of maternal mortalities and morbidities throughout the world, these guidelines were framed, issued and published by the WHO to protect women’s reproductive as well as safeguard overall physical and mental health.

AHB follows CAC guidelines for each abortion. And you can have this confidence since the doctors and staff here have experience of conducting safe abortions for women coming from different parts of the world for more than four decades.

To protect women’s health, the doctors at the hospital are highly qualified and experienced. Each successful abortion adds a feather in its cap. Even the nurses and paramedical staff have received specialized abortion assistance training internationally. Professional knowledge, the best training, extensive experience combined makes the AHB abortion team the best in India (and even internationally recognized).

CAC starts before an abortion and lasts after the abortion until the recovery of the patient. Pre-abortion care decides the method of abortion and helps prevent complications. Care and precautions during the abortion are a must for a successful abortion. And post-abortion care helps in the rapid healing of the woman so that she can resume her routine activities quick enough. Moreover, it also makes sure that there are no post-operative complications and does not affect the woman’s future pregnancies and life overall.

What is your option for abortion in Bangalore at AHB? What to expect? The dos and the don’ts:

Never do this.

The biggest and the safest don’t is self-administration of abortion pills or self-conduct of abortion by any means or resort to unsafe and illegal abortion.

We say so because you have a legal and safe way out of an unwanted pregnancy at AHB. Here are your options and the factors that govern them follows alongside.

Do you know how far are you in your pregnancy? This is because the method of abortion depends largely on the gestation period. Since the embryo grows every day, the abortion method that can completely terminate the unwanted pregnancy is prescribed.

If you do not know your gestation period, you can message us or call us to know your abortion options.

Schedule an appointment.

Since you need to book your flight tickets and make arrangements for your stay in Bangalore, it is advisable to call our helpline number and schedule the nearest possible appointment date. Earlier you do so, better it is. Delay in abortion is never appreciated from the health point of view as well as it tapers down your abortion options.

What to expect upon your visit?

Arriving in Bangalore, you can check in your hotel or room stay and then through any cab or any local convenience, you can visit the hospital. If you stay in touch with the hospital staff, your cab can be arranged for your convenience.

Upon reaching the hospital, you will receive private one-to-one consultation with the doctor. He/She will study your case, learn about any existing medical conditions, medicines you may or may not be on concurrently, your last menstrual period (LMP) and some other necessary details to avoid any complications.

Then, you will have to undergo some routine clinical examination and transvaginal ultrasound. These are very essential and if you opt for an unsafe abortion method, these pre-abortion studies are skipped and these may lead to many complications, some of which can be life-threatening.

Doctors at AHB perform these diagnostics to find out and prescribe you the best abortion method which is decided by the length of your pregnancy and also its location to avoid the complications of ectopic pregnancy, manage any complication that may arise due to blood loss or adverse effect or contraindication with any medicine(s).

Medical abortion:

The medical method or the MTP method of abortion is the abortion conducted using abortion pills. This method is 95% – 98% effective and may take up to a week for an abortion to be complete besides being accompanied by moderate to heavy bleeding and abdominal pain. Women from Bahrain do not wish to wait for so long or schedule repeated appointments and also they want to be confident when they return to Bahrain that they have availed a successful abortion. Hence, they usually do not choose this method of abortion. It is your available option only if your pregnancy is intrauterine and the gestation period is between 6 – 8 weeks.

Vacuum aspiration (VA) method of abortion:

This method of abortion is the most commonly picked up option by all women. This is your option if your pregnancy is less than 12 weeks. Most women from Bahrain who also have MTP as an open choice prefer this technique since at AHB it is:

  • Painless and gentle
  • Nearly 100% efficient
  • A short procedure lasting not more than 10 minutes.
  • Get discharged on the same day within an hour or so.
  • Minimum bleeding

The abortion is performed under anaesthesia to make it painless and also to calm the anxiety of the patient. A small tube-like instrument is inserted through the vagina, suction is applied either manually or utilizing an electric motor and the embryo gently sucked out.

The don’t: Do not try to perform this procedure on your own or with unprofessional help since it needs knowledge, experience and training to remove all products of gestation so that you can return with the confidence of successful abortion.

Dilatation and Evacuation (D&E) or the surgical method of abortion:

In case you arrive later than 12 weeks but are still less than 20 weeks of your pregnancy, you will most likely be prescribed with D&E method. By this time, the embryo grows to a size larger than that can be completely removed with the help of suction as in VA.

Do not panic or worry since, at AHB, this surgical method is:

  • Painless and gentle
  • Nearly 100% efficient
  • A short procedure lasting not more than 30 minutes.
  • Get discharged on the same day within a couple of hours or so.
  • Minimum bleeding

This method too is performed under anaesthesia to make it painless. The uterine lining is scraped off to remove all the products of gestation along with the embryo. This is done using small and slender medical tools. At AHB, all tools are sterilized before and after each abortion for hygienic concerns and to reduce the chances of infections to a minimum.

After the abortion procedure, you can relax in your private assigned room with a nurse by your side to assist with any of your needs. As soon as you feel comfortable, you can easily go and rest in your hotel and return the next day with a completed abortion.

You will be prescribed some medicines to avoid infections, some haematinics to make up for the blood loss and some supplements to aid in rapid healing.

And you know, the best thing is that the abortion in Bangalore at AHB is completely confidential and the doctors and staff are professional, caring and non-judgmental. No details relating to you or your abortion can ever be revealed to anyone besides yourself.

Remember, though an unwanted pregnancy was not your choice, a healthy way to opt-out of it is still in your hands. So, make a wise decision.

For any unaddressed queries, you can always call on our helpline number and seek medical advice.

Related posts:

  1. Safe, Confidential and Legal Abortion in India
  2. MTP in Bangalore – How to choose the best MTP doctors or MTP Clinic?
  3. How is Gentle Care Abortion different from surgical abortion at any abortion clinic?
  4. Post-abortion care for rapid and safe abortion recovery