Abortion Bill: Woman tells of English abortion ordeal

A Cork woman has described the "horrendous" experience she and her partner had at an English abortion provider two months ago.

The couple travelled to a British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) clinic six weeks after receiving a diagnosis of a fatal foetal abnormality.

She says she was told by the Sexual Health Centre in Cork city – which provides crisis pregnancy counselling – that care of women in her situation at BPAS clinics was “outstanding”.

She also learned BPAS charged £700 (€914) for a medical (non-surgical) abortion at 18 weeks, while others charged up to £2,000.

Isobel (31) – not her real name – was “ecstatic” when she found out she was pregnant in January. However, at her 12-week scan at Cork University Hospital (CUH), she was told her baby had anencephaly, meaning a major portion of his brain was missing.

Her doctor was "very compassionate" but laid out stark options. The baby would not survive outside the womb. He could continue her care in Cork if she wanted to bring the pregnancy to term. Or she could go to England for an abortion. "Straight away I said, 'No '."

However, after talking at length with her partner, she knew she “couldn’t carry a baby to full term not knowing, and the fear of having a full-term baby pass away in my arms – that was my biggest fear”.

She “didn’t know where to start”, but heard about the Sexual Health Centre.

“BPAS was mentioned a lot. [The counsellor] said they were absolutely outstanding with women in my situation. I would get care and compassion.”

She contacted BPAS and arranged a medical termination at its Doncaster clinic. She and her partner sailed to Holyhead the following Sunday.

‘So scared’

The next morning she was given Mifepristone – which blocks the production of progesterone – the hormone necessary to maintain a pregnancy. The following day she was given Misoprostol, to bring on contractions, and was brought to a room with a bed.

The couple were left alone – apart from two brief checks – and she got no pain relief. “I was so scared,” she said.

Later, a midwife returned and told her to push, she said. “I actually started pushing between contractions to hurry . . . and then Luke was born at 6.30pm.”

On the boat home the following day, she felt “so sad” about their experience.

"When we were sailing into Dublin Port I never felt so relieved to see home and be away from that horrible place. I missed my hospital. I missed the people who cared at CUH."

They buried Luke the next day, beside her grandmother.

She is angry with BPAS, but more so with the Irish State that she could not get the care she wanted at home. “I do blame the law more than anything,” she said.

As Independent TD Mick Wallace brings his Bill to legalise abortion in cases of fatal foetal abnormalities next week, she hopes telling her story may help convince TDs to vote for it.

‘Compassionate care’

A spokeswoman for BPAS would not comment on Isobel’s case, but said the charity aimed “to provide high-quality, compassionate care to all women, whatever their reasons for needing to end a pregnancy.

“We receive very positive feedback for the services we provide to women at what can be an extremely difficult time in their lives, and respond swiftly if ever women tell us they are unhappy with any aspect of the care they receive from us.”

Deirdre Seery, chief executive of the Sexual Health Centre, said counsellors provided information on abortion providers but never recommended one over another.

“We are always here to offer our support and help to anyone who has had an abortion, no matter when it was, to help them process what happened.”