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It is important to prioritize your health and safety before an abortion. Getting answers to the items listed below can be key in protecting your health. You’re in control, and you have the right to make a fully informed choice about your situation.
1. Make sure you’re pregnant.
It’s hard to tell if you are pregnant from symptoms alone. Many pregnancy symptoms have other causes. North Care offers a free laboratory-quality pregnancy test to help you.
2. Check if your pregnancy is viable.
A viable pregnancy is growing with a detectable heartbeat. Checking for a viable pregnancy is finding out if you have had a miscarriage. Up to 1 in 4 pregnancies end naturally. An ultrasound can provide this information.
3. Check to see if your pregnancy is inside the uterus.
An ultrasound can confirm if your pregnancy is in the uterus and show if you are having a life-threatening ectopic pregnancy.
An ectopic pregnancy means the embryo has been implanted in the wrong location. As the pregnancy grows, it becomes more dangerous. The traditional abortion pills do not treat ectopic pregnancy, as they are designed to terminate a pregnancy inside the uterus.
4. Find out how far along you are
An ultrasound is the most accurate way to date a pregnancy. The gestational age (how far along you are in your pregnancy) is vital in determining the type and cost of an abortion procedure.
Medical abortions are only approved by the FDA through the 10th week of pregnancy. After ten weeks, you may need a surgical abortion.
5. Check to see if you have an STD
Having an STD when you have an abortion can increase your risk of complications for your future reproductive health. North Care Women’s Clinic offers testing and treatment for chlamydia, gonorrhea, trichomoniasis, and BV, and testing for HIV and Syphilis.
6. Review specifics of abortion procedures, as well as risks and complications
Knowledge is power. To make an educated decision, you can speak with a member of our medical team to determine what happens during abortion procedures and what risks and complications are associated with them.
7. Know your rights as a patient
Patient Rights Checklist
You have the right:
- To talk beforehand to the doctor performing or prescribing your abortion.
- To a full and accurate description of the abortion process you are about to undergo.
- To know all the potential risks and complications of the abortion process- i.e. excessive bleeding and pain, incomplete abortion, medical conditions that would make the abortion pill unsafe for you, and other side effects.
- To ask questions and to change your mind at the last minute, even if you already started the abortion pill process or are already on the exam table.
- To know what to do if complications arise- i.e. when to go to the emergency room, is there a doctor you can talk to, and other resources to help if a problem arises.
- To ask if you will need a follow-up appointment, and what the cost of that will be.
- To know that no one can force you to have an abortion, even if you are a minor.
We’re Here For You
We want you to have the information you need to make a confident decision. Schedule an appointment today to get started.
References:
Committee on Obstetric Practice, American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine, Society for Maternal–Fetal Medicine. Reaffirmed 2022. Methods for Estimating the Due Date. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/committee-opinion/articles/2017/05/methods-for-estimating-the-due-date
Dugas, Carla; Slane, Valori H. Reviewed June 27, 2022. Miscarriage. National Library of Medicine. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK532992/
Gentles, Ian. Lanfranchi, Angela. Ring-Cassidy, Elizabeth. Complications: Abortions Impact on Women, Second Edition. The deVeber Institute for Bioethics and Social Research. November 8, 2018.
