At present in New Zealand, there are issues around equity of access. The majority of DHBs are either experiencing access issues, or expect to, due to workforce constraints and, in some areas lack of facilities. This is especially so for second trimester terminations.
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At present in New Zealand, there are issues around equity of access. The majority of DHBs are either experiencing access
issues, or expect to, due to workforce constraints and, in some areas lack of facilities. This is especially so for second
trimester terminations.
Some women are required to travel long distances to access a termination service.
If the woman is going to have to leave her family and travel outside her area to access a termination service, the referring
doctor can discuss travel arrangements with the travel coordinator at their local DHB (this may vary from region to region).
A recent study reported women who live in regions that do not offer local termination of pregnancy (TOP) services must
travel on average 221 km to access TOP services. This equates to an average return-trip distance of 442 km. Three of the
five regions that do not have local TOP services available have a higher than average proportion of Maori population.5
See www.abortion.gen.nz for a list of DHBs and the licensed
termination clinics in each area with contact details.