The divisiveness of abortion in regard to personal feelings is reflected in state regulations. In the United States, abortion laws and regulations vary among states. Although abortion is legal in all 50 states, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1992, that states have the right to restrict abortions based on certain intricacies (Zastrow, Kirst-Ashman, & Hessenauer, 2019). I currently reside in Michigan, which currently prohibits abortions past 24 weeks of pregnancy. What makes the abortion laws unique in Michigan is Michigan’s Informed Consent for Abortion law.
Michigan’s Informed Consent for Abortion Law was created and enacted by Public Act 133 in 1993. The law states that women considering an abortion must be provided certain information. The information must be provided 24 hours prior to the procedure. MDHHS (n.d. para. 1) explains the “information is designed to provide a woman with accurate and unbiased information on the procedure she is about to undertake.” The following documents were developed by MDHHS and include:
- A prescreening summary on prevention of coercion to abort
- A written summary of the abortion procedure she will undergo.
- Depictions, illustrations or photographs of fetal development corresponding to the gestational age nearest the probable gestational age of the woman’s fetus.
- Prenatal care information
- Parenting information (MDHHS, n.d., para. 2).
Since first being established, Michigan’s Informed Consent for Abortion law, has been amended several times to provide woman better options and protection. One change made to the law was to make the information available via the internet; making it more accessible to women. Another notable amendment was created to assure women seeking abortions were of their own choice and not being coerced. Women are also being offered help if they are being threatened, intimidated, physically, emotionally or sexually harmed (MDHHS, n.d.)
According to an article in the Detroit Free Press, Michigan’s largest anti-abortion group, known as Right to Life of Michigan, has been victorious with some of their petitions including:
- Ban taxpayer-paid abortions;
- Require parental consent for minor to get the procedure;
- Require women to purchase and additional rider to their health insurance policy if they want coverage for an abortion;
- And ban a procedure used to end late term pregnancies (Gray, 2019, para. 9).
Other successes the anti-abortion group have achieved include pushing restrictive measures through Legislative bills. Some examples of their successes include stricter regulatory standards for outpatient surgical centers; woman needing to wait 24 hours between making and abortion appointment and getting the procedure done, doctors offering pictures of the ultrasound or listening to the fetal heartbeat (Gray, 2019).
Some would say these techniques are coercive and bias and unfair to women seeking the procedure. To wade through the complexities of the evolving regulations, the role of a social worker becomes vital to the women going through this process.
As social workers, our role is to provide information and resources while assisting clients through the appropriate processes to resolve the challenge they are facing. Abortion can provoke strong feelings grounded in beliefs and morals. They should be able to provide appropriate information to the client while consciously limiting the effects of their biases or personal feelings.
Zastrow, Kirst-Ashman, & Hessenauer (2019, p. 71) explains the role of a social workers is to provide options instead of advice; and “assist clients in assessing their own feelings, and values, in identifying available alternatives, and in evaluating objectively as possible the consequences of each alternative.”
The social worker should guide a client and allow them to make their own decision without persuasion. Some information may be beneficial to share with the client, for example the information regarding documentation. The documentation would be important to read, explain, and comprehend prior signing and deciding to move forward with the abortion procedure.
The role of a broker would be useful to help connect the women to community services and resources. Providing the client with the proper websites and referring them to Planned Parenthood would also be important for resources and guidance to choose their best option.
My personal stance on abortion is an evolving and conflicting position. On one stance, I believe women have the right to choose and decide what happens to their bodies. On the other stance, I believe a fetus should have a chance to live. The answer to this question is not black and white for me, there are many things to consider.
For example, if a woman is choosing to abort because they were raped and do not feel a connection to the fetus, why should she have to succumb to an unwanted pregnancy. At the same time, what fault does the fetus have? Why does he/she not have a say to live or die?
As a woman who wanted children and struggled to have them because of infertility issues, I would hope no one would want to have an abortion. But also understand that each circumstance is different and a personal choice. My immediate family is very small, but my extended family is extremely large, and I always wanted to be a mom of at least five.
After years of trying and being unsuccessful, my husband and I seek professional help where we discover our infertility challenges. At first it was hard to accept; and I found myself mad at the world. This was a struggle as I worked in the foster care system and questioned the ability of many of my clients to be ‘good’ parents.
However, I was able to overcome these feelings through education, conversation, and acceptance with many individuals in my circle. The feelings eventually subsided when our invitro fertilization (IVF) was successful. My upbringing in a strong catholic household also aided to my way of thinking.
I received my education in a catholic school until I entered high school and attended church every Sunday. My mother is a Mexican woman with strong catholic views and abides by the Catholic teachings. As I got older and started to understand and form my own opinions, I began to question some of the teachings. Particularly a woman’s right to choose what’s best for them and free choice. My desire has always been to help others and within that desire keeping an open mind to the various challenges and ethical dilemmas has been important for me.
I strive to be unbiased and nonjudgmental. Because of my thoughts and feelings about abortions, ethical entanglements should not become an issue for me. However, if it does I think it would be important to critically think the process through prior to assisting any client. Possibly discussing my concerns with my supervisor or colleague would help.
