How to avail a safe, confidential abortion in Kottayam
Picturesque views of turquoise waters, calm and relaxing beach holidays, trading point for rubber, spices and various commercial crops and more makes Kottayam a city in Kerala with extraordinary qualities.
But does the city have similar good qualities for helping women access their reproductive rights? Do women seeking abortions for unwanted pregnancies have easy access to an abortion clinic in Kottayam?
This post intends to equip the knowledge bank of Kottayam women with their safe abortion options. Unwanted pregnancies may come as disturbing elements in life and life may come to a standstill. Earlier you know your options, it is better both for your physical and mental wellbeing.
The news of an unwanted pregnancy is a big stress for unmarried girls and single women. They fear the wrath they may have to face at the hands of the family, community and/or society. In fact, the fear of being judged, becoming the victim of prejudice, receiving foul comments is immense. It is so grave that young girls and women opt for unsafe abortions for unwanted pregnancies.
Fear from society is so big that they overlook the complications with abortions and finally fall prey to bigger troubles.
As a result, unsafe abortions continue to be the third major reason for maternal mortality in India. Even women who survive these complications may have to lead their entire lives with a medical condition. Eventually, they may lose their fertility. In addition, their physical and mental health may have a negative impact.
Do women have no better choices for abortion? Or do they have?
Women in Kottayam do have better choices. They may just not know about them. If you are seeking an abortion in Kottayam, stay tuned to know your best abortion option.
Abortion rules in Kottayam, Kerala, India:
Abortion in India is legal. Even then, women and girls find it difficult to obtain an abortion in Kerala. As a result, they often travel to different cities to avail safe and confidential abortions.
Majority of women from Kerala choose to travel to Bangalore for obtaining safe abortions. During many incidents, women were turned away when they tried to obtain an abortion in Kerala. Not only the abortion clinics in Kottayam but also the ones located in nearby cities like Thrissur, Kochi, Ernakulam, Trivandrum also similarly treat the patients.
When women think they do not have an abortion as a choice for terminating an unwanted pregnancy, they resort to self-abortions. Sometimes, they buy abortion pills illegally by paying more at some pharmacies. On other times, they may obtain the unsafe manual abortions in Kottayam from illegal sources or unprofessional people.
Eventually, the end results in most cases are botched up abortions. Many such cases appear in emergency wards of hospitals where women are brought after suffering post-abortion complications.
Indeed, knowing reproductive rights can help women take a legal stand when doctors tend to take moral stands. Since the problem of societal stigma associated and treatment women seeking abortions receive may not change overnight. So, women who know the rules may opt for safe abortion options. On the whole, they know that unsafe abortions can put their health and life in danger. Besides, they also know that access to safe abortion services can be a reality if they look forward to better options for providing comprehensive abortion services.
Now, let’s have a look at the circumstances in which abortion in Kottayam is legally permissible.
Permissible situations:
Abortion in Kerala and everywhere else in India is permissible for the cases where:
Failure of contraceptives:
Various methods of contraception are available. However, they do fail many times. When carrying on with the pregnancy is not likely, you may obtain an abortion for contraceptive failure.
Points to note:
- Marital status: You may obtain termination of an unwanted pregnancy both as a married woman or an unmarried girl or a single woman. Earlier, unmarried women were not included in this clause.
The MTP Act 2021 specifically came as a relief for unmarried girls when the contraceptive failure clause was made available to them as an option for terminating unwanted pregnancies.
This was included to prevent unmarried girls from unsafe abortion practices. Unsafe abortions have been putting many women lives in danger. Thus, the clause of abortions for contraceptive failure were included for unmarried girls.
Providing them with safe abortion options may prevent them from attempting unsafe abortions. Hence, their health may be protected and lives saved.
- You may or may not reveal the contraceptive that you used and it failed. It is not necessary to mention the same.
- Moreover, you do not need any partner or parental consent for obtaining an abortion in Kottayam for the reason of contraceptive failure if you are an adult.
However, if you are less than 18 years, consent from parents or guardians may be required.
- You can obtain an abortion in India for the reason of contraceptive failure for up to 20 weeks of pregnancy.
- You should visit a registered abortion clinic for a safe abortion. Only certified and registered medical practitioners are allowed to terminate unwanted pregnancies. But not all hospitals or clinics are certified for safe abortion procedures. So, while visiting an abortion clinic or MTP centre near you, do not forget to check whether the clinic is a certified abortion hospital or not.
Rape/Incest/Sexual assault:
Rapes are brutal and immoral acts. They come not only as of the physical trauma but also add the mental anguish. Women may survive rapes. But continuing with the pregnancy resulting from rapes can be traumatizing for them daily throughout their lives.
Sexual assaults deeply and negatively impact a woman’s wellbeing and result in severe psychiatric trauma.
Victims often are reminded of the traumatizing incidences of assault if they are not allowed to terminate unwanted pregnancies.
To prevent such pregnancies from becoming lifelong anguish, abortion in India is legal for terminating pregnancies resulting from rapes.
Points to note:
- You may obtain an abortion for ending an unwanted pregnancy as a result of rape both as a married woman or an unmarried girl. Marital rapes are equally traumatizing and may end in unplanned pregnancies. Indian abortion law does permit legal termination for such pregnancies.
- You can obtain an abortion for this clause for up to 20 weeks. However, many women and girls went to seek legal help for terminating such pregnancies beyond this period. The gestation period has been extended for up to 24 weeks as another wing of the MTP Act 2021.
- If you are above 18 years old, you may obtain an abortion only with your consent. In the case of minors, parental consent is required.
Many minor rape survivors in Kerala were allowed to abort their unwanted pregnancies by the court beyond the permissible age of 24 weeks.
Examples:
- A 13-yr-old girl gets pregnant from a 14-yr-old brother, Kerala HC grants permission for abortion. (Read full news at https://keralakaumudi.com/en/news/news.php?id=531764&u=)
- Kerala HC allows termination of pregnancy of rape survivors. (Read more at: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/80219174.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst)
- The abortion hospital may not ask you the proof of rape. Only the cases that go through a legal hearing and a committee is made before a decision may need to provide evidence of the sexual assault.
Many women from Kerala living in Gulf countries often visit Bangalore for abortions of unwanted pregnancies. Most of these countries like Qatar, the UAE, Bahrain, Oman, Kuwait and others do not permit abortions for this reason.
Even in countries where abortion is legal for the reason of pregnancies caused by incest, the same has to be proved in the law court.
To protect the woman’s physical/mental wellbeing:
There may be events where continuing the pregnancy may pose a threat to the woman’s physical or mental wellbeing. Abortion in Kottayam, Kerala, India is permissible for this clause.
Points to note:
- To protect the woman’s life, there is no upper limit mentioned in the MTP act. However, the required conditions beyond 20 weeks, who can terminate a late-stage pregnancy, in which situations a pregnancy may be terminated and the methods of abortion may depend upon the individual patient case. And it may have to be certified by two or more registered medical practitioners.
- Only the woman’s consent is sought for abortion in such a case. However, if the woman is mentally or physically incapable, consent from the partner or parents may be required. Parental consent is required even for terminating pregnancies of minors.
Fetal deformities have been detected:
Many advanced techniques and procedures like 3 D, 4 D anomaly scanning and prenatal diagnosis, and Chorion villus biopsy/amniocentesis have allowed the prenatal diagnosis of various fetal anomalies. In many circumstances, the child to be born may not survive.
Even in cases where the child may survive, he/she may suffer from developmental or physical or mental disorders like Autism, lack of limbs, heart malformation, Down’s Syndrome, etc.
Abortion in Kottayam, Kerala, India is permissible for terminating such pregnancies up to 24 weeks. Abortions up to 20 weeks may be available with the consent of a single doctor only. However, for terminating any fetus beyond 20 weeks, even in case of fetal deformities, permission from two registered medical practitioners is required.
Again, a woman can obtain an abortion for this reason too only on her consent if she is an adult.
Travelling to Bangalore for a legal, safe and confidential abortion:
Bangalore is a progressive city in comparison to Kottayam or other cities of Kerala. Therefore, not only the city is well-equipped with advanced healthcare facilities, but also stigma with abortions is not prevalent.
When you seek an abortion, you may be wanting a safe abortion, a legal and a confidential one.
The legal status of abortion in Bangalore is similar to that of abortion in India. So, all the legally permissible events, the clauses for consent, gestation age, etc. are the same as mentioned above in the post.
Now, comes safety and confidentiality. So, what is a safe abortion and what kind of abortion would you consider as a confidential one? Feel free to bring forward your views in the comment section below. We will address all your queries most respectably and privately as possible.
A safe abortion:
- Safe abortion protects and safeguards the woman’s
- Physical and/or mental wellbeing.
- Her human rights
- Her privacy
- Respects her decisions
- Abortion is considered safe when the procedure is done safely and the woman’s health is restored well on time.
- The pre-abortion consultation, the abortion procedure and post-abortion prescriptions are all done following guidelines by the World Health Organization (WHO). These guidelines have been framed to help women access Comprehensive Abortion Care (CAC).
- Safe abortion should ensure that the patient is satisfied with the care she has received.
- The patient’s information is to be kept confidential and woman’s privacy respected.
- All the abortion-related information should be made available to the patient before the procedure. The consultation, abortion procedure, prescription, cost of abortion and what to expect during and after the procedure, all should be explained to the patient in an easy-to-understand language.
- The woman should feel safe, friendly and caring throughout her stay at the hospital.
- She should not be seen with any negative feelings or judged for her choices. Whether the patient is an unmarried girl or a single woman or a married woman, she should not be made to feel guilty either for getting pregnant or for seeking an abortion. Rather, she should feel that she is being cared for and that abortion is just a medical procedure.
If you want such holistic abortion care, you may choose to visit the best abortion hospital, American Hospital Bangalore.
Call their helpline number to schedule an early appointment.
A confidential abortion:
If you are seeking an abortion in Kottayam, what kind of privacy would you need? Do you think you can avail of a confidential abortion in Kottayam at any abortion hospital?
An abortion may be regarded as confidential when the personal and medical details of the patient are kept completely confidential. These details must not be shared with anyone in any manner except for the patient herself. The hospital staff or anyone cannot reveal any information relating to the patient to anyone.
Do you know, a person who contravenes with this confidentiality of the patient shall be punished by law?
The punishment for disclosing any patient’s personal information may be imprisonment which may extend to one year with or without a fine.
There are limited healthcare facilities in Kerala and patient to doctor ratio is very high. This means a single doctor may be attending to many patients each day. This may even delay your abortion options. Moreover, the crowded waiting halls may put you in a difficult situation upon hitting a neighbor.
This may again compromise your privacy. For this reason, too, patients often travel to distant cities such as Bangalore for obtaining confidential abortions.
If you seek completely confidential, holistic abortion care and personalized services where you may not get to see any fellow patient, you can schedule an appointment at AHB today.
Safe, legal and confidential abortion at American Hospital Bangalore:
Access:
AHB is a premier hospital specializing in specific medical procedures, abortion being one of them. It is located in the heart of Bangalore city and is easily accessible by different means of transport.
Patients coming from Kottayam to Bangalore may come to travel via railway or by road. Several interstate trains and buses run across the two cities. Or you may choose to hire a private cab or may visit by your personal car, as convenient.
In case of any difficulty in arranging the same, you may schedule your appointment with AHB. The coordinator at the hospital may guide you in every step or can even have your entire abortion trip scheduled if you seek so.
To make the abortion experience absolutely hassle-free and keep the patients off the stress of schedules, travel arrangements and hotel bookings, AHB offers a VIP package also where the coordinator shall take care of all your needs.
Arriving in the city, checking in the hotel, visiting the hospital, consultation, the abortion procedure, resting overnight in the hotel and returning to Kottayam with the confidence of a successful procedure are all that the hospital can take care of.
Or if you wish to schedule your trip, you may check out the links for the best options:
For booking the train tickets: https://www.makemytrip.com/railways/kottayam-bangalore-train-tickets.html
For booking the hotel: https://www.oyorooms.com/hotels-near-queens-road-bangalore/
Hiring a cab: https://www.clearcarrental.com/kottayam-to-bangalore
For scheduling your travel by bus: https://www.redbus.in/bus-tickets/kottayam-to-bangalore?fromCityName=Kottayam&fromCityId=259&toCityName=Bangalore%20%28Bengaluru%29&toCityId=122&onward=29-Nov-2021&busType=Any
Abortion procedures at AHB:
American Hospital Bangalore offers safe abortion procedures for unwanted pregnancies following abortion rules in India. The guidelines laid by the World Health Organization for Comprehensive Abortion Care are followed for all abortion procedures.
When you arrive at AHB, you will be warmly received. There will be no fellow patients since the hospital intake of patients each day is limited. Only a single patient is given an appointment at a time.
Pre-abortion consultation:
You will receive a private one-to-one consultation with the doctor. A nurse may be by your side for assistance. You may or may not bring a companion or a friend along. The doctor will check your vitals, take down your medical notes, evaluate your case and request some clinical and other diagnostic tests.
Clinical blood and urine tests may be required for ascertaining your medical details, presence of any infection(s) or other clinical conditions. These are essential to prescribe the best medicines and abortion procedures for you. Also, it may help the doctor in ascertaining the dose and mode of administration of medicines. In addition, this is an essential part of pre-abortion consultation so that abortion complications can be avoided.
The ultrasound or a transvaginal scan may be advised to you to ascertain the exact length and location of your pregnancy. Again, this is very essential to prescribe you the best abortion method.
The doctors at AHB ensure that each patient medical condition is thoroughly evaluated so that the abortion is successful, complete and the patient can return on a happy note.
Things considered before abortion procedure:
Several things are considered before prescribing the best abortion method. These include:
Length of pregnancy:
This is essential to prescribe the best abortion method that may ensure that the abortion is complete. According to the WHO guidelines, the three safe abortion methods that are prescribed for terminating intrauterine pregnancies according to gestation age are:
- The medical method of abortion for up to 6-8 weeks of pregnancy.
- Suction abortion or the Vacuum Aspiration (VA) method of abortion for up to 12 weeks.
- Dilatation and Evacuation (D&E) or the surgical method of abortion for up to 20 weeks.
Location of pregnancy:
Although ectopic pregnancies are rare, these days, incidences have increased. Therefore, it is necessary to rule out the probability of ectopic pregnancies. And if found, it needs a different course of treatment.
The aforementioned methods of abortion are to terminate intrauterine pregnancies. Ectopic pregnancies are also known as extrauterine pregnancies. Ectopic pregnancy has to be removed at the earliest to save the life of the pregnant woman.
Clinical diagnostic tests:
The doctor may advise you to undergo routine blood and urine examination. These are essential to check your blood levels, blood group, hormonal levels in the blood, presence of any infections (either in the blood or urine), blood sugar, your liver function tests (LFT), renal function tests (RFT) and a few more according to individual patient conditions.
Dose adjustment of any medicine may depend on the reports. It may also be checked whether you are allergic to some medicines.
The abortion procedures:
Whatever abortion procedure may be prescribed to you, you can expect to receive a painless, Gentle care abortion. All abortion procedures at AHB are single-day and can be completed in a single appointment.
Medical abortion is nearly 95% – 97%, involves, pain, heavy bleeding and there is a risk of incomplete abortion. Furthermore, it may need more than 3-7 days to complete the abortion. Therefore, most women from Kottayam prefer single-appointment and 100% efficient procedures. They can get relieved of the burden of unwanted pregnancy with the confidence of a complete abortion.
After the procedure, you may rest overnight in the hotel and may return to Kottayam the following day.
Post-abortion care:
At AHB, you will be advised with post-abortion guidance for quick recovery. You will also receive a prescription to take some supplements that can help you get back to your normal life as early as possible.
Besides, you will be guided into the post-abortion diet, the Dos and Don’ts after an abortion and more. You may also receive advice on contraception and if you wish, you can ask the doctor for an Intrauterine Contraceptive Device (IUCD). Furthermore, it may be implanted during the abortion procedure itself.
Feel free to ask your queries. Since the hospital intake of patients is very limited, you may not want to miss an early date.
Schedule your appointment at the best abortion hospital today itself.
Related posts:
- Seeking abortion in Kollam: Your safe, confidential options
- Where to have a safe and confidential abortion in Kozhikode
- Failure of contraception: Where to have a safe abortion?
- Cost of abortion: Medical vs Surgical methods of abortion
- Medical or Suction abortion method: What may be best for you
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