Demand at one of Canberra's leading family planning and abortion clinics has outgrown the service and the facilities are outdated, meaning the ACT government can do more to offer universal abortion access, its operator has said.
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MSI International - formerly known as Marie Stopes - also called for free and universal access to more contraceptive procedures, including vasectomies, long-acting reversible contraception and tubal ligation.
The clinic operator has told a Legislative Assembly committee inquiring into abortion access in the territory the government should boost public health efforts to reduce abortion-related costs, including free and discreet access to pregnancy tests, cervical and sexually transmitted infection screening, condoms and menstrual health products.
"When abortion was criminalised, a high level of regulation was understandable. Now that abortion is recognised as healthcare, governance of abortion care must be led by clinicians rather than politicians," the submission said.
MSI Canberra clinic nurse unit manager Melissa Ryan said it was fantastic the government would explore barriers to abortion access in the territory.
"We are long overdue for an inquiry like this. Free abortion care in the ACT has been a long time coming," Ms Ryan said.
"Cost can be a huge barrier so to see the ACT Government leading the way on these issues, particularly for those on temporary visas, is heartening."
Ms Ryan said the clinic would like to see free access made available this year. The ACT government has said it would spend $4.6 million over four years to cover out-of-pocket abortion costs, which will be available to all residents from early next year.
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MSI International said its clinic was not fit to deliver complex abortion and contraceptive care, and was unable to meet accreditation requirements for abortion beyond 16 weeks or tubal ligation.
The current clinic was also inaccessible for people with disabilities and there was not enough space to care for "women and pregnant people who are escorted to the clinic under custody. Subsequently personnel, such as prison guards, share space with numerous clients, in addition to the client they are escorting".
The clinic does not offer any space for prayer or ritual. MSI International's submission said some people choose to bury fetal remains, but these clients needed access to funding or resources. The submission called for the government to provide support for these services.
"To address these issues, the clinic requires an upgrade including a discreet space for situations where additional client privacy is required, for example, a larger surgery room, upgraded beds and other equipment, all of which are essential for quality and safety in care," the submission said.
MSI International has operated the Canberra clinic since 2004, taking over from another clinical provider in a space owned by the ACT government.
MSI International made three recommendations to the inquiry, which was prompted by the decision of the United States Supreme Court decision to overturn abortion rights in that country. The decision brought about renewed focus on abortion access in Australia.
The ACT government should design and resource a sexual and reproductive health strategy and invest in collecting abortion-related data to increase the understanding of abortion access in the territory, the submission said.
Between January 2018 and June 2022, the average age of a person accessing abortion in the MSI Canberra clinic was 29.5 years old and one in three people were born outside of Australia.
The clinic operator said 5 per cent of people who had accessed surgical or medical abortion in its Canberra clinic preferred a language other than English and 2 per cent had an interpreter present during abortion-related consultations.
"It is particularly hard to find interpreters in Canberra for abortion and contraceptive care, and near impossible for any minority or emerging language groups," the submission said.
The clinic operator said, during the COVID-19 pandemic, more people had chosen to access medical termination through telehealth services.
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Jasper Lindell
Jasper Lindell joined The Canberra Times in 2018. He is a Legislative Assembly reporter, covering ACT politics and government. He also writes about development, transport, heritage, local history, literature and the arts, as well as contributing to the Times' Panorama magazine. He was previously a Sunday Canberra Times reporter.
Jasper Lindell joined The Canberra Times in 2018. He is a Legislative Assembly reporter, covering ACT politics and government. He also writes about development, transport, heritage, local history, literature and the arts, as well as contributing to the Times' Panorama magazine. He was previously a Sunday Canberra Times reporter.
