Training and education
Training
Currently there are no training opportunities for doctors or nurses at our clinic, but it is possible to do a day of job shadowing. If you are interested and you are a doctor, nurse or midwife (qualified or in training), please send us an email at info@abortioncare.nl
Education
Are you looking for information about abortion care in the Netherlands for a school project, talk or research? Our website is packed with information about the treatments and our way of working.
If you have abortion questions not related to the treatments, please check the FAQs at the bottom of this page.
You can also find loads of information on the following websites:
Zanzu
Rutgers
Sense
Ministerie van VWS
If your answer is not listed, please contact educatie@abortioncare.nl
FAQ
What is the average age of women who have an abortion?
Most women who have an abortion in the Netherlands are between 25 and 30 years old and already have one or more children. There are very few abortions among teenagers (8%).
Is abortion a criminal offence?
Abortion has been legal in the Netherlands since 1984, but it is still listed in the Criminal Code. This means that abortion is still a criminal offence, unless you meet a whole range of requirements.
It is, of course, good that quality standards are set for performing an abortion, but it would be better if abortion, like all other medical treatments, were not covered by the Criminal Code. You can see that this is also happening in more and more other countries: it simply falls under the same regulations as other medical treatments, thereby reducing the taboo surrounding abortion.
Do you always have to go to an abortion clinic for an abortion?
In the Netherlands, 90% of abortions take place in abortion clinics, but 10% take place in a hospital.
This has historically developed in this way: before 1984, abortion was illegal in the Netherlands, but was tolerated. As a result, the procedure could not take place in hospitals, and special clinics were opened.
This has always remained the case, even after abortion became legal with the introduction of the Termination of Pregnancy Act in 1984. Hospitals can also perform abortions, but they must have a special licence to do so.
Some hospitals deliberately choose not to do so for religious reasons.
What does the doctor do if the woman still has doubts on the day of the procedure?
If women are still unsure about their decision on the day of the procedure, we do not carry it out. We often make a new appointment so that the woman can have some more time to think, or we refer her for decision-making support, for example to FIOM, her GP or, if necessary, a psychologist.
How is the duration of pregnancy calculated?
The duration of pregnancy is calculated from the first day of the last menstrual period; this is an old-fashioned method from the time before ultrasound scans. You only become pregnant around two weeks later, at the time of ovulation. So if someone is seven weeks pregnant, they became pregnant around five weeks ago and are about three weeks overdue.
Up to how many weeks of pregnancy is abortion possible?
Under Dutch law, you may terminate a pregnancy up to 24 weeks. This period is regarded as the viability limit: from that point onwards, a foetus could survive outside the woman’s body. However, clinics in the Netherlands apply a margin of safety and perform procedures up to a maximum of 22.5 weeks. This is because they want to be certain they are not performing the procedure too late, and also because the procedure becomes technically too difficult after this point.
Most abortion procedures in clinics take place in the first seven weeks of pregnancy. There are very few procedures in the Netherlands after 18 weeks of pregnancy. This accounts for only 7% of procedures in clinics. In hospitals, there are slightly more abortions at a later stage, often after a dangerous abnormality has been detected during the 20-week scan. In the case of a (wanted) pregnancy, the pregnant woman always has a scan around 20 weeks to check all the foetus’s organs.
Sometimes a very serious abnormality is detected, such as heart defects, spina bifida or brain abnormalities. In such cases, a woman or couple may decide, in consultation with the doctor, to terminate the pregnancy.
If this takes place in a hospital, the woman is induced. She is then given hormones to bring on early labour. The baby will die during or immediately after birth. This is a different procedure to the one carried out in a clinic: in a clinic, women can sleep during the abortion and do not have to give birth.
Why is an ultrasound scan carried out?
An ultrasound scan is always carried out prior to the procedure. The woman does not have to view the scan if she does not wish to. The scan is to confirm whether a woman is indeed pregnant (there may also be a miscarriage) and how far along the pregnancy is. The latter usually corresponds with the woman’s calculation, but sometimes it does not. The doctor also checks whether the pregnancy is located in the uterus. A very rare (and potentially dangerous) complication is an ectopic pregnancy. This must be treated differently, by a gynaecologist.
Is abortion covered by insurance?
No, abortion is not covered by health insurance, but by the government (through subsidies). It is free for all women living in the Netherlands who pay tax.
This ensures the procedure is anonymous, so that women who do not pay for their own health insurance can also have an abortion. Nothing will appear on their insurance statement.
Because it is free, abortion is also accessible to women who would otherwise be unable to afford it.
In many countries, abortion is not available or cannot be performed anonymously. There, women often undergo illegal, sometimes life-threatening abortions.
Do some women experience psychological symptoms after an abortion?
Very few women experience psychological problems after an abortion; extensive research has been conducted on this:
https://www.nemokennislink.nl/publicaties/abortus-veroorzaakt-geen-psychische-problemen
Stories about psychological problems following an abortion are often circulated by the anti-abortion lobby, which frequently uses inaccurate studies for this purpose.
Can minors also have an abortion?
Fortunately, there are very few teenage pregnancies in the Netherlands and therefore very few abortions among teenagers. In the Netherlands, young people aged 16 and over are allowed to make decisions independently. This means that they do not need permission from a parent or guardian for an abortion.
Under the Medical Treatment Agreement Act (WGBO), dual consent is required for medical procedures involving minors aged between 12 and 16. That is to say, consent must be given by both the minor themselves and their parent or guardian.
For some girls, it is undesirable or even harmful for their parents or guardian to be aware of the abortion. Consider, for example, communities where abortion is taboo or, worse still, where there is a risk of honour killings. In such cases, the doctor may decide to perform the abortion without the knowledge and/or consent of the parents or guardian. For the sake of due care, a second doctor or care worker usually also speaks with the girl in such cases.
Do women opt for abortion too easily?
No, having an abortion is not pleasant and no woman takes this decision lightly. Most women find it quite frightening because they do not know what to expect, or because they have been given incorrect information about abortion, for example that it can cause infertility. Many women are also afraid that they will be judged for it. They feel ashamed, guilty or afraid that they are making the wrong choice. Unfortunately, there is still a taboo surrounding abortion and many people disapprove of it. Some women therefore do not dare to share their decision with anyone, even though they are in a difficult situation themselves.
Why do women choose to have an abortion?
There are many reasons why a woman might choose to have an abortion. Some women do not want children (anymore), or do want them but not now or not with this partner. Or someone is too young, wants a stable relationship and a job first, good housing, to get their life in order. Or a new pregnancy or another child would put too much pressure on the current family. Carrying a pregnancy to term may also pose a medical risk to the woman.
Does the father of the child have a say in the abortion?
No. The woman in question is the only one who can make the decision; it concerns her health and her right to decide about her own body. Many women do make the decision in consultation with the father, but this is not legally required. This is, of course, frustrating for the father if he would like to make a different decision, but as long as he cannot take over the pregnancy and the foetus is not yet viable, he has no say in the matter.
Do anti-abortion groups have any influence in the Netherlands?
The anti-abortion lobby is particularly strong in the US and also sponsors initiatives in Europe. There are also organisations in the Netherlands that are trained and sponsored by American organisations to ‘rescue’ women at abortion clinics. In practice, this means that women at clinics in the Netherlands are intimidated and given incorrect information about abortion.
As this has also been on the rise in the Netherlands in recent years, the ‘Abortion Buddies’ project was launched: women can be accompanied to the clinic by a support person who helps them get past the protesters. Abortion Buddies can also support women who do not want to go to the clinic alone and have no one to go with.
Has the number of abortions risen in recent years, and by how much?
The number of abortions in the Netherlands has remained roughly the same for years, at around 30,000 per year. You do see, however, that the number of teenage pregnancies is falling every year and that a proportion of these 30,000 women come from abroad (mainly France, Germany, Belgium and Poland) because those countries have stricter abortion laws and so they travel to the Netherlands for an abortion. 30,000 sounds like a lot, but it is actually one of the lowest abortion rates in the world; this is because we have very good access to contraception. You do see, however, that since a few years ago contraception is no longer covered by insurance for those over 21, the number of abortions in the over-21 age group has risen slightly.
Interview with an abortion doctor
Why are you in favour of performing abortions?
I am in favour of performing abortions. We do not call it ‘committing’ because abortion is a medical procedure and ‘committing’ sounds like a crime, such as committing a criminal offence or murder. I am in favour because I believe that women who become pregnant unintentionally should never be forced to carry a pregnancy to term. That is not in the best interests of the woman, nor of the (potential) child. You see that in countries where abortion is banned, women do not choose abortion any less often than in the Netherlands. They simply do so illegally and therefore often in very unsafe conditions. Worldwide, a woman dies every 8 seconds as a result of an illegal abortion. These women find themselves in such a desperate situation with their unwanted pregnancy that they are even willing to risk dying rather than carrying the pregnancy to term. Carrying to term and giving birth to an unwanted pregnancy is, in fact, psychologically very difficult for women; a great deal of research has been done on this. Research also shows that women who become pregnant unintentionally and make a well-considered decision to have an abortion often do not suffer any psychological problems as a result.
Why did you become an abortion doctor?
I studied medicine and, during my studies, I occasionally came into contact with women who were facing unwanted pregnancies. I saw that this was often very stressful for these women and I really wanted to help them. I found it very distressing to see that there is still such a taboo surrounding abortion. It is, of course, a very uncomfortable subject that people would rather think about as little as possible. But as a result, many people have prejudices about abortion. I felt it was important to do something about this, so that women who unfortunately have to make such a decision need not feel so much guilt.
Do you enjoy your work?
What I like about my work is that women often come in with a huge problem and are very sad, but leave feeling very relieved. They feel less guilty and bad about the situation they’re in. We also work with a lot of women at the clinic, which creates a very familiar atmosphere. As a result, many women who come here are very open; you get very close to someone’s personal life for a moment.
Has the number of abortions risen in recent years, and by how much?
The number of abortions in the Netherlands has remained more or less the same for years, at around 30,000 a year. You do see that the number of teenage pregnancies is falling every year and that some of these 30,000 women come from abroad (mainly France, Germany, Belgium and Poland) because stricter abortion laws apply in those countries. 30,000 sounds like a lot, but it is actually one of the lowest abortion rates in the world. This is because we have very good access to contraception. However, since a few years ago, when contraception for women over 21 is no longer covered by insurance, the number of abortions in that age group has risen slightly.