How hard is it to access an abortion in New South Wales? This map shows the ‘abortion deserts’
An “abortion desert” is a term coined by USA-based researchers to describe places that are 160 kms or more from the nearest abortion service. To better understand where women in New South Wales are most struggling to access abortion, researchers led by the University of Sydney and the data visualisation specialist Ri Liu mapped access to surgical abortion and medical abortion across the state. The dark orange area in the above map was the NSW abortion desert in mid-2024.
Obtaining abortion services for people living in an abortion desert requires (at a minimum):
-Access to a form of transport.
-A minimum round trip of four hours by car.
-Possible overnight accommodation.
-Additional travel funds beyond the cost of the abortion itself.
This assumes a person is able to travel, take time off from work or carer responsibilities, and in some cases, has someone come with them to support them through the process (including driving back if it is a surgical abortion).
Abortion deserts shift and change according to the type of abortion care people need or prefer. For example, medical abortion is only currently available for pregnancies of nine weeks gestation. In some parts of rural NSW, there is one single healthcare practitioner providing this service. If they move away, retire or stop providing this service, the abortion desert would immediately expand, affecting everyone in that location.
SOURCE: The Guardian Australia, by Ri Liu, Melissa Davey, Andy Ball, Nick Evershed. 16 December 2024.
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New South Wales abortion deserts: just three of 220 public hospitals provide terminations, research finds
All 15 health districts and the state’s health minister refused to give public information on access to abortion
Just three of New South Wales’ (NSW) 220 public hospitals are routinely providing abortions, according to research by the University of Sydney. The research, which maps lack of access to abortion in the state, also reveals that a majority of the state’s cities and towns are “abortion deserts”, meaning the nearest service is more than 160km away.
Abortion is legal in NSW. Despite the World Health Organization recommendation that all public hospitals provide it, finding out where abortion is offered, and under what circumstances, is difficult.
The only public hospitals openly providing abortion outside of a medical emergency are Broken Hill hospital in the state’s far west; John Hunter hospital in Newcastle on the north coast; and the Royal Women’s Hospital in Sydney. Women elsewhere are left trying to access one of just 13 private providers, which cost a minimum of $775 if you have a Medicare card. And they are not easy to find in any directory.
Because there may be unadvertised abortion services at other public hospitals, Guardian Australia separately contacted all NSW local health districts to ask which of their hospitals provided abortion and what happens to people seeking abortions in their district if they don’t. None of the health districts replied.
The peak body for obstetricians and gynaecologists described the lack of information about abortion access at public hospitals as “completely unacceptable”.
SOURCE: The Guardian Australia, by Melissa Davey, Nick Evershed, Donna Lu, 17 December 2024.