Lagos State Unveils Guidelines On Safe Abortion

A policy document has been unveiled by the Lagos State Government through the Ministry of Health on safe termination of pregnancy.

The policy document tagged 'Lagos State Guidelines on Safe Termination of Pregnancy for Legal Indications', reveals the guidelines for abortion within the sphere of the criminal law of Lagos State.

 Dr Olusegun Ogboye, the Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Health, while speaking at the launch of the document at a stakeholders’ engagement, explained that therapeutic termination of pregnancy is permissible under the law in Lagos State.

He further explained that what triggered the policy document was the need to provide evidence-based data and information for health workers in public and private sectors who have the requisite skills and training necessary to provide safe terminations to reduce preventable deaths.

Ogboye said, “In 2011, the Lagos State House of Assembly updated the criminal code, providing for abortion to save the life and protect the physical health of the woman.

"While physical health is covered under the Lagos legal framework, services conforming to the law have not been available in Lagos State health sector.

“This document provides information on relevant laws applicable in Lagos State while providing standards and best practices with regards to legal indications, pre and post-procedure care, methods and monitoring.

"I must state here that this document has undergone wide consultation with relevant technical stakeholders within the legal and health service context in the State.”

Ogboye also revealed that the process of developing the guidelines commenced in 2018 with the Safe Engage project led by the Lagos Ministry of Health which was hosted by the Society for Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Nigeria, with support from the Population Reference Bureau, adding that stakeholders in the State health sector have worked hand in hand with key opinion leaders in Lagos and the South-West region in order to come up with termination guideline that is in line with the legal context.

“To guide the implementation, one of the follow-up recommendations of the project was the adaptation of the National Standards and Guidelines for Safe Termination of Pregnancy within Legal Indications within the Lagos State context.

"The Federal Ministry of Health had developed and disseminated the national guidelines on safe termination of pregnancy which highlights the compendium of conditions and circumstances under which termination of pregnancy could be instituted.

“The guideline was intended to build the capacity of health professionals to identify pregnancies for which legal termination could be instituted.

"Marie Stopes International in Nigeria in collaboration with the Population Reference Bureau proposed to support the State government to adopt the document.”

Ogboye further explained that before the release of the guidelines adaptation, several technical meetings have been put in place to discuss sections of the law supporting safe abortion and conditions permitted within the legal framework to save the lives and the physical health of mothers; and validation meetings with the broader stakeholders to review the document.

“All that handwork has culminated in today’s dissemination of the guidelines. We hope this dissemination today will help guide health providers to provide this service within the ambit of the law,” Ogboye added.

Earlier, Emmanuel Ajah, the Country Director of a leading reproductive health organisation, Marie Stopes International Organisation Nigeria (MSION), has stated that abortion in Nigeria is not illegal but restrictive, noting that a significant number of health providers are not aware of the legal indications for safe termination of pregnancy.

“The domestication of this policy provides that needed guidance to healthcare providers on medical conditions in pregnancy that pose a high risk to the woman’s life and health if the pregnancy progresses to term, and on the standard management of abortion within the extent of the law in Lagos state.

"This policy is a demonstration of the commitment of the Lagos state government to improving maternal health, especially mitigating the impact of unsafe abortion practices in the State,” he stated.

Also speaking, Prof. Innocent Ujah, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Medical Sciences, Otukpo, who was one of the Consultants who developed the document said that the deployment and use of the guidelines will reduce the death rate of pregnant women.