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Nurses can lawfully perform non-surgical abortions
Dear Editor,
I welcome your report of May 19, on the number of abortions cases and your comments on the law. 
Your report is correct: while we made abortion legal 21 years ago, we have done nothing to remove the stigma associated with that need. We can do so only by public discussion and persistent dialogue. Your report is incorrect about the law itself in a number of places.
There is no outer limit for a legal abortion in Guyana. But the standard is very high. Beyond sixteen weeks three medical practitioners must agree on the need and the circumstances must be grave – to save the woman’s life or prevent grave, permanent injury to the child (see Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, Clause 7).
In early pregnancy, up to eight weeks, the pregnant woman has free choice. She does not even have to give a reason for her choice (MTPA 5.(2). Between 8 and 16 weeks, the woman has to provide a cause and the termination must be performed by an ’authorized’ medical practitioner in an approved institution, see MTPA 6.(1). Your report also gives the impression that only doctors can lawfully provide abortions. That is incorrect.
Our law permits nurses, midwives, pharmacists and medexes to provide non-surgical (e.g. medication) abortions during the first eight weeks of pregnancy. Although this was perfectly clear in the law, MTPA Clause 5. (1), the Ministry resisted this provision. The matter was resolved by an order of the High Court in November 2015. This is a major advance. It is unfortunate that the Ministry has made no effort to inform the public and educate nurses even in the face of the exposure to Zika. I will address the issue of the number of abortions in a separate note. Suffice it to say that the figure reportedly suggested by the CMO is almost certainly a gross underestimate.
Fred Nunes
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