Unfulfilled commitment

The landmark Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act of 1971 legalized abortion in India at a time when it was legal in only 15 countries across the world. By bringing out this Act, the government made a commitment to make abortions available, safe and confidential to the women of our country. While the Act does not lay down abortion as a woman’s right, it includes “failure of contraception” (in addition to medical and socioeconomic reasons) as a valid indication for availing an abortion, making the choice fairly universal up to 20 weeks of pregnancy. There have been significant transformations in the technological and public health landscape for improving access to safe abortion services in line with the original vision.

May 2017

Source : Deccan Herald

Self-managing abortions safely

Medical abortion (MA) is a method of termination of early pregnancy using a defined combination of drugs. Recognised as a very safe technology, it is the preferred choice of women across the world. MA was approved by the Drug Controller General of India in 2002 as a Schedule H drug; it is not an over-the-counter medication. However, it is estimated that annually, between 6-8 million women attempt to terminate their pregnancy themselves by sourcing the drugs from chemists without a prescription. Despite abortion being legal in the country and concerted efforts being made by the public health system to improve abortion care, it is worth asking why women take recourse to self-use of MA to terminate an unwanted pregnancy.

October 2017

Source : The Hindu

You invest in employees and buy their loyalty, says Vinoj Manning

Vinoj Manning, executive director at IDF believes in an accessible culture to make a workplace healthy for employees. He says, “We are an NGO and we work for people; we do everything through people. Given that, our staff is extremely critical. The importance of staff is paramount and more so in the domain we work in."

October 2017

Source : Livemint

Ipas ensures healthy workplace environment through surveys

Founded in India in 2002, Ipas works in 12 demographically poor states across the country including Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Meghalaya and Assam. The foundation trains more than 800 doctors from primary and community health centres every year and certifies them to provide abortion services (abortion law requires doctors to be certified before they can perform such services). “It’s one big family we have here. Every birthday and every festival is celebrated,” says Vinoj Manning, executive director at IDF.

October 2017

Source : Livemint

NGOs fast emerging as great employers

Non-government organizations (NGOs) are the backbone of civil society in India. Increasingly, they are also the choice of people looking for a career in the public sphere. To that end, it is important to rate NGOs in terms of how each one is as a place to work in. Great Place to Work Institute, the global management consulting and research firm, has identified the 10 best non-government organizations (NGOs) in India that offer the best environment to work in. IDF features in the list of 10 best NGOs to work for in India.

October 2017

Source : Livemint

Public sector serving poor women for comprehensive abortion care: IDF study

An in-depth study undertaken by IDF recently published in The BMC Health Services Research (BioMed Central) journal explored the socio-economic profile of women accessing CAC services at different levels of public health facilities in rural and urban Madhya Pradesh. This study specifically examines 1) if public sector facilities are offering CAC services to women, 2) socio-economic profile of women varied by type of public sector facilities, and 3) if women incurred any out-of-pocket cost (indirect) to access services in terms of transportation, food, clinical examination, and medicines. Although this study was conducted in Madhya Pradesh, the findings have a national implication on the role of the public health system in serving poor women.

August 2017

Source : Express Healthcare

Accessible abortion

Safe abortion services should be made a reality for women in our country In India, the liberalization of law to facilitate access to safe abortion services began in 1964, under the aegis of the Shantilal Shah Committee. Doctors frequently came across women who had taken recourse to unsafe abortions, because of legal barriers. Under the Indian Penal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure, both the woman and the abortionist could be punished, unless the pregnancy posed a grave threat to the life of the woman. After an exhaustive review of national and international evidence, the committee submitted its recommendations in 1966 for legalizing abortion. The Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act passed almost five decades ago, put India in the league of 15 other countries to legalize induced abortion for a broad range of conditions.

August 2017

Source : The Week

As early as possible and as late as necessary

The pregnancy of a 10-year-old presents a complex and unprecedented situation but laws sensitive to the needs of the women and girls involved could make a world of a difference. The case of the ten-year-old child who is pregnant because of rape is a tragedy. Still recovering from the expenses incurred for open heart surgery for this little girl, the family is now confronted with the challenges of encountering courts and panels of doctors at tertiary hospitals while coping with the fact that their daughter was raped in their own house and is now pregnant in the late third trimester at this young age. We understand that the Government at the national level and from the Union Territory is providing the required legal, financial, and medical support to her and her family, which is helpful.

July 2017

Source : Hindustan Times

Parliament Must Join the Courts in Ensuring Women’s Right to Safe Abortions

In July 2016, the media in India was flooded with news about a subject most people shy away from - everyone in the country was suddenly talking about women's right to safe abortion services. This year, once again we are having detailed discussions and seeing public analysis on women's bodily autonomy and their access to comprehensive abortion care. In the intervening period, the Supreme Court and high courts have dealt with a series of appeals from young women seeking relief for termination of pregnancies beyond 20 weeks of gestation, both on grounds of rape as well as in cases of diagnosed foetal abnormalities incompatible with life. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has proposed amendments to the MTP Act after extensive consultations initiated way back in 2006, grounded on the principles of women's rights.

July 2017

Source : The Wire

The Trump gag rule hits India: Organisations asked to declare they do not provide abortion services

Non-governmental organisations in India have been asked to self-declare that they do not perform abortions or provide abortion services while submitting proposals to the United States Agency for International Development. USAID is the body responsible for administering civilian foreign aid given by the United States government. Said Vinoj Manning of Ipas Development Foundation: “When US decides that through their funding they will inhibit Indian agencies from doing anything around abortion, it is contrary to the Indian policy on abortions and therefore an impingement on our sovereignty.”

April 2017

Source : Scroll.in