ABSTRACT

Introduction: Every year, 73 million abortions are performed worldwide. The nurse has a significant responsibility when caring for the woman during an abortion. Research that has presented a connection between mental health issues and abortion has been shown to contain methodological flaws. Attitudes and reasons, as well as the emotional and physical reactions, have been found to vary between different women. Therefore it is important to develop an understanding of what contributes to the experience of support during the care of an abortion.

Aim: The aim of this study is to describe women’s experiences of support during an abortion.

Method: A literature review was conducted with a qualitative design, involving the retrieval of 10 original scientific articles from PubMed and CINAHL. The results were compiled according to the guidelines for a general literature review and presented in three main categories.

Results: The importance of interpersonal interactions included women's descriptions of how good versus bad treatment contributed to their experience of support, with certain attributes standing out as contributing to the feeling of support. The need for person-centered care highlighted how women experienced support when they were cared for in an individualized manner, as a unique person with respected autonomy. The importance of tailored information described how women stated that receiving adequately tailored information contributed to feeling supported. 

Conclusion: In order to support women undergoing an abortion, nurses must have knowledge of the factors that establish support in the caregiving process. Good support fosters autonomy, well-being, and future health.

Keywords: Care, induced abortion, person-centered care, support, women's experiences