Abortion experiences among young women: Using evidence to guide interventions in Africa, Asia and Latin America

Safe abortion care is a component of basic reproductive health services that should be available to all women. Nevertheless, women below the age of 24 account for 46% of all deaths from unsafe abortion around the world. We conducted a comprehensive literature review on youth and abortion and included articles from peer-reviewed journals published in English from 1999-2009. A total of 35 articles from 15 countries were included in the review. The main themes of the research findings included views on adolescent sexuality, contraceptive use, decision making related to abortion, stigma and shame related to this decision, roles of health care providers, counselors and family and community members in the abortion experiences of these young women. One main barrier to safe abortion services is the legal environment in which young women live. These include general abortion laws as well as secondary regulations for minors and unmarried women. In general, young women do not seek safe abortion or post-abortion care services because of inconvenient hours, lack of transportation, high cost of services and little knowledge of available services. Many young women have limited knowledge about sexual anatomy, conception and pregnancy processes, and have many myths related to the use of contraception. three levels of stigma that impede access to safe abortion services include: stigma related to the age of women and their capability to make decisions themselves; stigma related to young women's sexuality; and stigma related to unmarried young women single parenting.