Volume 44, Issue 3
September 2018
|
Pages 81 - 89

Pharmacy Provision of Medication Abortion in Nepal: Pharmacy Owner and Worker Perspectives
Goleen Samari, Columbia University Mahesh Puri, Center for Research on Environment, Health and Population Activities Rebecca Cohen, University of Colorado Maya Blum, University of California, San Francisco Corinne H. Rocca, University of California, San Francisco

First published online:

| DOI: https://doi.org/10.1363/44e6518
CONTEXT

Medication abortion has the potential to transform the provision of safe abortion care in low- and middle-income countries, and can be provided with minimal clinical skills and equipment. In Nepal, first-trimester abortion using mifepristone and misoprostol is legally available at government-certified health facilities, but little is known about pharmacy workers' perspectives regarding pharmacy-based provision.

METHODS

In-depth interviews were conducted in 2015 with 19 pharmacy owners and auxiliary nurse-midwives in two districts of Nepal to examine respondents' views on medication abortion and on potential legal provision of medication abortion from pharmacies. Two coders independently reviewed interview transcripts, and coded and analyzed them using a thematic approach.

RESULTS

Participants were confident that they could provide safe medication abortion and felt that they filled an important niche by providing affordable, convenient and confidential services to women in their communities. They saw benefits of integrating pharmacies into legal abortion networks in Nepal, such as improved access to medication abortion and greater privacy. Participants also felt that the quality of the care they provided could be improved through ongoing training of pharmacy-based providers and formal incorporation of such providers into existing networks of abortion provision to streamline referrals.

CONCLUSIONS

Integration of pharmacies into the legal abortion provision system could aid in regulation and training. Consideration of pharmacy workers' perspectives can help to ensure the sustainability and success of safe abortion programs.

Full text available open access on JSTOR

Author's Affiliations

Goleen Samari is assistant professor, Department of Population and Family Health, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York. Maya Blum is project director, Beyond the Pill Program, and Corinne H. Rocca is associate professor, Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health—both with the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences, Bixby Center for Global Reproductive Health, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA. Mahesh Puri is associate director, Center for Research on Environment Health & Population Activities, Kathmandu, Nepal. Rebecca Cohen is assistant professor, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Center, Denver, CO, USA.

Disclaimer

The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of the Guttmacher Institute.
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