Fewer Abortionists Nationwide

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Fewer Abortionists Nationwide

Special Report - August 25, 2011
A new survey finds that only one in seven ob-gyns in the United States perform abortions for their patients who seek them. The survey, “Abortion Provision Among Practicing Obstetrician-Gynecologists,” was published in the September 2011 issue of the journal, Obstetrics & Gynecology. The study asked 1,800 practicing ob-gyns nationwide whether they had “ever encountered patients seeking abortions in their practice and whether they provided abortion services.” The responses indicated that 97 percent of practicing ob-gyns reported having “encountered patients seeking abortions,” but only 14 percent of practicing ob-gyns had performed abortions.

Some of the key findings:

Women ob-gyns were more likely (18.6 percent) to perform abortions than men (10.6 percent). Physicians who perform abortions “tend to be female, less religious, live in urban areas, and live in the Northeast or West.”
Catholic and Protestant physicians were less likely to provide abortions.
Physicians in religious facilities associated with a “denomination other than Roman Catholic were no more or less likely to perform abortions than those who work in facilities without a religious affiliation.”
Physicians who primarily work in Catholic medical facilities have a “decreased likelihood of performing abortions,” regardless of their personal religiosity. Researchers theorized that the difference could be a result of policies prohibiting abortions in Catholic facilities.

The study briefly outlined the declining history of obstetrics-gynecology residency programs that include abortion training over the last 15 years. Despite an accreditation requirement by the American Council on Graduate Medical Education that residency programs must include abortion training, a 2008 survey of ob-gyns who had been “board-certified between 1998 and 2001 found that only 22 percent provided abortions.” The study concluded that “[a]ccess to abortion remains limited by the willingness of physicians to provide abortion services.” Abortionists are aging out, as the average age of the American abortionist rises and they retire without being replaced by younger physicians willing to perform the controversial procedure. However, the oldest and youngest groups of ob-gyns in the survey represented those most willing to perform abortions, so the trend could reverse itself.

Related resources:
Life Begins at Conception - June 30, 2011
Legislature Muters Historic Veto Override - June 16, 2011
Governor Vetoes Informed Consent - June 28, 2011