Less Than 20 GPs Offering Abortion Care In The Midlands

Stock Image

A new review into Ireland's abortion legislation warns of possible burnout among medical staff.

There are less than 20 GPs offering abortion care in the midlands.

An independent review into Ireland's abortion legislation has found uneven geographical coverage could make the service 'untendable.'

There are just three GPs offering termination of pregnancy care in Offaly, four in Laois, and nine in Westmeath.

The report warns a lack of participating providers could cause burnout among medical staff.

One GP who took part in the study says 'there is still a lack of services, particularly in some counties, so that’s certainly an issue in terms of giving somebody choice.'

The report also found the midlands accounts for just 3% of abortions carried out in Ireland between 2019 and 2021.

656 termination of pregnancies were performed in the three-year period in the region.

288 of those were carried out in Westmeath, 185 in Laois and 183 in Offaly.

Nationally, nearly 18,000 abortions were performed between 2019 and 2021.

More from Midlands News

Download Our App