Whether Abortion or Medical Abortion is legalized in India?
There is a general misconception or lack of clarity about getting a Medical Termination of Pregnancy or abortion in India. Many women or couples are not aware that it is legal in India since 1971. As per Section 3 of the MTP Act 1971, where any pregnancy occurs as a result of failure of any contraceptive device and the woman doesn’t want to continue with the pregnancy as deem it to be unwanted & having desire to get it terminated, then the woman is having a legal right to get it terminated by the Registered Medical Practitioner at the abortion or MTP centre approved by the Government of India.
Where an undesired or unwanted pregnancy can be terminated?
It is important to know that the undesired or unwanted pregnancy can be terminated only at the Govt. hospitals or the private medical centres approved/registered by the Govt of Delhi. Dr. Rupali’s Medical & Diagnostics is an approved medical centre in South Delhi by the Govt. of NCT of Delhi for conducting abortions/MTP.
It is further important that no abortions/MTP can be done at unapproved places & in case if any abortion (medical or surgical) performed at unapproved place/facility or medical centre by the doctors/owners, then it’s a criminal act under MTP Act which may lead to 5 years imprisonment to the doctors and owner of the unapproved place.
What are the various types of Abortions?
There are only two types of Abortions:
01. Medicinal Abortion- Medicinal Abortion is a non-surgical method performed with medicines (mifepristone and misoprostol) usually done by the patients at home. The first pill mifepristone disrupts the pregnancy. Misoprostol, the second medicine is used at home 24-48 hours later to make the uterus contract and push out the pregnancy and blood. This abortion is very painful for the patients as strong cramping with heavy bleeding and clots are common during the process.
Surgical Abortion- means dilating the opening of the uterus (cervix) and placing a small suction tube into the uterus to remove the fetus and placenta from the uterus. It’s a very safe, simple & painless procedure of five minutes done under the supervision of expert gynaecologist & anesthetist in an operation theatre under short general anesthesia without giving any incisions/cuts, stitches or scarring. The positive aspect is that the recovery rate is higher and the patient generally gets discharged after one-two hour after completing of the procedure.
Comparison between Medicinal and Surgical Abortion
| Medicinal Abortion | Surgical Abortion |
|---|---|
| It is usually prescribed in pregnancy lesser than 6 weeks. | It is usually prescribed in pregnancies of 6 weeks or more. |
| It is a non surgical method as perfomed with medicines usually done at home. | It is a surgical method as performed under general anesthesia in the operation theatre with the help of sterile equipments. |
| The medication takes more time. | It takes only 5 minutes. |
| Failure rate is higher. | Success rate is higher around 99%. |
| It is severely painful as cramping can be strong and lasts longer. | It is safe, simple and painless procedure as done under general Anesthesia. |
| Bleeding & cramping heavier. | Minimal bleeding & cramping. |
| No support from medical staff & counselors. | Timely support from staff nurse & counselors. |
| Harder to maintain privacy from family because of significant bleeding, cramping & other side effects. | Privacy of the patient is utmost priority and confidential. |
| Not recommended for anemic patients. | Recommendable for anemic patients. |
| Recovery takes more time. | Recovery rate is faster. |
How Surgical Abortion is performed at Dr. Rupali’s Medical & Diagnostics?
Dr. Rupali’s Abortion Centre is having an expert team of doctors, technicians and staff nurse to take care of the patients pre and post of the procedure. We do ultrasound guided procedures to confirm that no clots/piece is left in the uterus. All procedures are performed in sterile asceptic conditions in the state of the art Modular Operation Theatre equipped with centralized oxygen pipeline. It has all the advanced surgical instruments and equipments to complete the procedure in just five to ten minutes without causing any pain to the patient.
What are the pre-requisites to be done by the patients before surgical abortion?
Following pre-requisites are required:
- Ultrasound pelvis to assess the maturity of pregnancy & rule out tubal pregnancy.
- Routine blood investigations like CBC, blood Group, HIV, HbsAG etc.
- Past history of medication & disease.
- Written consent of the patient on Form C.
- Patient has to remain empty stomach/NBM (without water & food) for atleast 4 hours before the procedure.
How much time is taken in completing the surgical abortion?
The experienced team of Dr. Rupali’s Abortion Centre takes only 5-10 minutes in completing the procedure. But the patient has to reach the centre with empty stomach two hours prior of the procedure as certain medications and drips have to given to the patients before the procedure. The patient has to remain in the centre for one more hour under supervision of staff nurse who checks her all clinical parameters before discharge. The patient is provided water, juice and some biscuits (from Dr. Rupali’s Abortion side) after the procedure to make the patient more stable & comfortable. Thus, the whole procedure takes around 4 hours depending upon the health of the patient.
In which cases the Surgical Abortion is allowed by the law?
Surgical Abortion is allowed by the law in the following cases:
- When there is personal decision of the couple not to carry/continue the pregnancy. (The consent of the wife is mandatory and if the girl is minor then the consent of the guardian on behalf of her is mandatory).
- When there is a birth defect or genetic problem in the baby due to unknown reasons.
- When carrying pregnancy is harmful to the health of the mother (Therapeutic Abortion).
- When the pregnancy resulted after a traumatic events like rape or incest.
Whether any complications occur in carrying the next pregnancy?
No, there is not any complication occur in carrying the next pregnancy as the normal menses resumes within 4 to 6 weeks. The ovulation resumes quickly after an abortion, so pregnancy can happen soon after an abortion. But, it is advisable for not having any sexual contact for atleast 15 days after the surgical abortion.