Back in January 1988, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that Canada\u2019s Criminal Code provisions related to abortion violated women\u2019s Charter guarantee of security of the person, and were therefore unconstitutional. That decision signified the decriminalization of abortion in Canada.<\/p>\n
Martha Paynter says the decision was \u201cexceptional and important,\u201d and one that Canadians don\u2019t recognize enough.<\/p>\n
\u201c35 years ago, we became the only country in the entire world to have completely decriminalized care,\u201d says Paynter. \u201cAnd we remain the only country in the entire world with completely decriminalized care.\u201d<\/p>\n
Paynter is a UNB nursing professor and the spokesperson for the newly founded New Brunswick Abortion Care Network, a group of 20 advocates working in the fields of nursing, obstetrics, family practice, pharmacy and health administration.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs healthcare providers, we lean on Dr. Henry Morgantaler\u2019s legacy,\u201d says Paynter. \u201cWe want to carry on in his footsteps, always expanding access to care.\u201d<\/p>\n
CHMA spoke with Martha Paynter to find out more about the New Brunswick Abortion Care Network.<\/p>\n
Paynter says despite Canada\u2019s singular place in the global landscape, there are still challenges to abortion access, and one of the biggest is misinformation and lack of information.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to be more forthright and familiar with these very basic and essential parts of our reproductive health repertoire,\u201d says Paynter. \u201cWe\u2019ve just had so many years of treating abortion like it was some secret special service\u2026 And it is normal, it is common, it is safe.\u201d<\/p>\n
There are two types of abortion that are available and publicly funded in the country: surgical abortion and medication abortion.<\/p>\n
\u201cAspiration or surgical abortion is a very simple procedure,\u201d says Paynter. \u201cIt takes about seven minutes.\u201d Medication abortion involves taking five different pills and is, \u201can intense experience, similar to a miscarriage,\u201d says Paynter. \u201cHeavy cramping, heavy bleeding can last a couple of days, so it\u2019s not an instant fix.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMedication abortion itself is still quite new,\u201d says Paynter, \u201cand some people don\u2019t know it exists or how it works.\u201d<\/p>\n
In New Brunswick, surgical abortion is available in three hospitals, two in Moncton and one in Bathurst. Clinic 554 in Fredericton also offers the procedure but through a private pay model with funding help available depending on need through the clinic. (The provincial government has refused to cover the procedure at Clinic 554, even though it has meant the federal government has withheld health transfers in amounts equal to the cost of the procedures offered there).<\/p>\n
Medication abortion is more widely available.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are medication abortion prescribers all across the province,\u201d says Paynter, \u201cincluding nurse practitioners and family doctors.\u201d<\/p>\n
For those with or without a primary care provider, Paynter says its important to note that referrals are not required for abortion care.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople don\u2019t [need to] waste time trying to get into a walk-in clinic or their family doctor to get a referral,\u201d says Paynter. You don\u2019t need a referral, just call\u2026 Those clinics and hospital based clinics will make sure that you\u2019re directed to care immediately.\u201d (Scroll down for a list of clinics provided by the New Brunswick Abortion Care Network.)<\/p>\n
Another issue that Paynter says the new network will work on is equity of access. For example, the requirement for a medicare care is a barrier to care.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are a lot of people without papers and as care providers, we would never want to turn anyone away,\u201d says Paynter. \u201cSo that is a policy issue that really is a serious priority for this province, and every province, to address.\u201d<\/p>\n
In addition to her work with the new network and her teaching and academic career, Paynter is also an author. This Thursday night, she will be reading from her book, Abortion to Abolition: Reproductive Health and Justice in Canada<\/em><\/a>, as part of an event to mark the 35th anniversary of the Morgentaler decision. The event is being held at Venus Envy in Halifax but is also available online. To register, check out the event website here.<\/a><\/p>\n New Brunswick Abortion Care Network access information:<\/strong><\/p>\n If you are a patient seeking abortion in New Brunswick, call:<\/em> Patients in Zone 4<\/strong> (Edmundston Area), Zone 5<\/strong> (Campbellton Area) and Zone 7<\/strong> (Miramichi Area) can contact any of the above numbers for support.<\/p>\n Here's Martha Paynter on CHMA's Tantramar Report:<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Back in January 1988, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that Canada\u2019s Criminal Code provisions related to abortion violated women\u2019s Charter guarantee of security of the person, and were therefore unconstitutional. That decision signified the decriminalization of abortion in Canada. Martha Paynter says the decision was \u201cexceptional and important,\u201d and one that Canadians don\u2019t recognize…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":106,"featured_media":138836,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[223],"tags":[4791,6626,23027,23028,23029],"radio":[227],"origine":[274,275,277],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/canada-info.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138830"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/canada-info.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/canada-info.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canada-info.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/106"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canada-info.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=138830"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/canada-info.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138830\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":138859,"href":"https:\/\/canada-info.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138830\/revisions\/138859"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canada-info.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/138836"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/canada-info.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=138830"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canada-info.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=138830"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canada-info.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=138830"},{"taxonomy":"radio","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canada-info.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/radio?post=138830"},{"taxonomy":"origine","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canada-info.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/origine?post=138830"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nZone 1 <\/strong>\u2013 Moncton Area (surgical and medication abortion)
\n\u2022 The Moncton Hospital. Self-referral, call (844) 806-9205
\n\u2022 Dr Georges L Dumont University Hospital. Self-referral, call (506) 869-2770
\nZone 2 <\/strong>\u2013 Saint John Area (medication abortion)
\n\u2022 Sexual Health Centre. Self-referral, call (506) 658-3998
\nZone 3 <\/strong>\u2013 Fredericton Area (medication abortion)
\n\u2022 Sexual Health Clinic. Self-referral, call (506) 453-5379
\nZone 6<\/strong> \u2013 Bathurst Area (surgical and medication abortion)
\n\u2022 Chaleur Regional Hospital. Self-referral, call (506) 544-4150<\/p>\n