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Senior Obstetrician and Gynecologist Dr. Peter Ssebadduka and James Mwebaze from Centre For Women’s Justice at a health cafe
Evelyn Akello, not real name, had an abortion due to fear of being stigmatized and fear for her family to excommunicate her.
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Now in 32 years old she said that after her secondary school education at 17 years she joining a nursing school in Kampala, in her first year a colleague befriended her and she had sexual intercourse during their relationship, and she became pregnant.
Because of the fear from the nursing school to expel her due to her pregnancy, the fear of her father and siblings anger she took a decision to get rid of the foetus.
It all started during school I offered a nursing and it all started in first year when i became a victim I fell for the guy and we had sex and l got pregnant so at that time the nursing school wanted to take us for placement and l went to the hospital and l did know that l pregnant and the nurses realised that l was pregnant l bought an SGE. Mife (Mifepristone) or Misoprostol. “Abortion pills” refer to a safe medical regimen used to terminate an early pregnancy, typically combining Mifepristone and Misoprostol.
“I was raised by a single father and my brother was paying my tuition and at nursing school we were told that once one is pregnant you are expelled and after giving birth you present the baby for proof so that you can continue but i was fearing my friends and family,” she said
I got courage and told the midwife at school that l was pregnant she gave me the medicine and for three days l was at her home and she kept on monitoring me until the foetus came out,
I went back to school, studied and graduated. I am not saying that abortion is good but for certain reasons the guy throw me out and he started sleeping around with other girls made me decide.
I didn’t want my colleagues and family to see me in a bad way 2019 l was 17 years going to 18 l didn’t want my parents to know and up to now they don’t know
Akello is not the only one.
There are many teenagers and women carrying out abortions illegally while others are doing it unsafely
While others fear the law they carry out unsafe abortion.
During a Science Cafe under the Catlysts consortium of unsafe abortion, a Senior Obstetrician and Gynecologist Dr. Peter Ssebadduka said that although there are many women who go to health facilities to have abortions, they usually advise them not to abort.
Women and adolescents usually have sexual intercourse and when they get unintended pregnancy some want to get rid this,
There are many reasons why women have abortions, some do so because of fear, peer pressure, stigma, religious ,health workers and cultural norms among others,
He said that in most cases when they approach health workers for an abortion, we counsel them, advise them and let them take their decisions, however some carry out unsafe abortions using local herbs and they still end up in hospital.
Some carryout spontaneous or induced abortions for medical reasons these are allowed both can lead to complication adding that these services are available upto Health Centre 3 handle these cases.
The maternal mortality ratio in Uganda is estimated at 189 deaths per 100,000 live births and out of these 10 die due to complications of abortion.
We are allowed to carry out abortion if the woman’s life is at steak if raped, defiled or coerced you may get trauma but the law does allow us to carryout abortion.
Abortion usually happens under unsafe medical care due to the laws which do not allow women to carry out abortion.
Termination is legal on medical condition however there are some long-term complications like infertility
James Mwebaze from Centre For Women’s Justice said diseases like high blood pressure. Cancer family rejection are some of the reasons people carry out abortions.
He cautioned against the influence of tradition, we talk about safe abortion and warn women against cultural norms about abortion
He noted that stigma and misinformation often push women to unsafe abortion methods. The issue is not about law, it’s about the realities which most of us advocate for.
, https://eastafricanwatch.net/stigma-fear-push-women-adolescents-to-abort-in-uganda/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=stigma-fear-push-women-adolescents-to-abort-in-uganda
