Innovative Abortion Research in Colombia: The Qualitative Global Turnaway Study and mHealth

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Location(s): Colombia

Description

Based on the innovative study design of the U.S. Turnaway Study, ANSIRH is launching a new study, the UCSF Global Turnaway Study, to learn about the experiences of women around the world who attempt to obtain a legal abortion but are denied the procedure because they arrive too late for care and are “turned away.”  Talking to women around the globe who have been unable to obtain a legal abortion will allow us a unique perspective into the lives of women who are facing the decision to have an illegal and often unsafe abortion or have an unwanted birth.

We have partnered with researchers in Cambodia, Colombia, India, Nepal and South Africa, and are currently in the critical phase of collecting feasibility data in each country to show that this study can be done. But embarking on a global research study is a huge undertaking. We need to travel to our research sites to meet with our international collaborators. We need to fairly pay the expert, local research assistants who will interview women in our study sites, compensate local clinics for the additional administrative costs that come along with recruiting women into a study and, most importantly, reimburse the women who participate in our study for their time, travel and effort.