Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Feb;79(2):686-697.
doi: 10.1111/jan.15487. Epub 2022 Nov 11.

Nurse practitioners on 'the leading edge' of medication abortion care: A feminist qualitative approach

Andrea Carson  1 , Emma Stirling Cameron  2 , Martha Paynter  1 , Wendy V Norman  3   4 , Sarah Munro  5 , Ruth Martin-Misener  1
Affiliations

Nurse practitioners on 'the leading edge' of medication abortion care: A feminist qualitative approach

Andrea Carson et al. J Adv Nurs. 2023 Feb.

Abstract

Aims: To explore nurse practitioners' experiences of medication abortion implementation in Canada and to identify ways to further support the implementation of medication abortion by nurse practitioners in Canada.

Design: A qualitative approach informed by feminist theory and integrated knowledge translation.

Methods: Qualitative interviews with stakeholders and nurse practitioners between January 2020 and May 2021. Data were analysed using critical feminist theory.

Results: Participants included 20 stakeholders, 16 nurse practitioner abortion providers, and seven nurse practitioners who did not provide abortions. We found that nurse practitioners conduct educational, communication and networking activities in the implementation of medication abortion in their communities. Nurse practitioners navigated resistance to abortion care in the health system from employers, colleagues and funders. Participants valued making abortion care more accessible to their patients and indicated that normalizing medication abortion in primary care was important to them.

Conclusion: When trained in abortion care and supported by employers, nurse practitioners are leaders of abortion care in their communities and want to provide accessible, inclusive services to their patients. We recommend nursing curricula integrate abortion services in education, and that policymakers and health administrators partner with nurses, physicians, midwives, social workers and pharmacists, for comprehensive provincial/territorial sexual and reproductive health strategies for primary care.

Impact: The findings from this study may inform future policy, health administration and curriculum decisions related to reproductive health, and raise awareness about the crucial role of nurse practitioners in abortion care and contributions to reproductive health equity.

Patient or public contribution: This study focused on provider experiences. In-kind support was provided by Action Canada for Sexual Health & Rights, an organization that provides direct support and resources to the public and is committed to advocating on behalf of patients and the public seeking sexual and reproductive health services.

Keywords: abortion; feminist theory; health services research; nurse practitioner; nursing; qualitative methods; reproductive health.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

No conflict of interest has been declared by the authors.

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Aiken, A. R. A. , Romanova, E. P. , Morber, J. R. , & Gomperts, R. (2022). Safety and effectiveness of self‐managed medication abortion provided using online telemedicine in the United States: A population based study. The Lancet Regional Health – The Americas, 10, 1–8. 10.1016/j.lana.2022.100200 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Altshuler, A. L. , Ojanen‐Goldsmith, A. , Blumenthal, P. D. , & Freedman, L. R. (2017). A good abortion experience: A qualitative exploration of women's needs and preferences in clinical care. Social Science & Medicine, 191, 109–116. 10.1016/j.socscimed.2017.09.010 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Baker, K. , Adams, J. , & Steel, A. (2021). Experiences, perceptions and expectations of health services amongst marginalized populations in urban Australia: A meta‐ethnographic review of the literature. Health Expectations, 25(5), 2166–2187. 10.1111/hex.13386 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Barnard, S. , Kim, C. , Park, M. H. , & Ngo, T. D. (2015). Doctors or mid‐level providers for abortion. The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 7(7), CD011242. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bearak, J. , Popinchalk, A. , Ganatra, B. , Moller, A. B. , Tancalp, O. , Beavin, C. , Kwok, L. , & Alkema, L. (2020). Unintended pregnancy and abortion by income, region, and the legal status of abortion: Estimates from a comprehensive model for 1990–2019. Lancet Global Health, 8(9), E1152–E1161. - PubMed