Pathways to unsafe abortion in Ghana: the role of male partners, women, and health providers

Hilary Schwandt, Johns Hopkins University
Andreea A. Creanga, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Kwabena Danso, University of Ghana
Richard M.K. Adanu, University of Ghana
Michelle J. Hindin, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Despite a liberal legal abortion law, complications from induced abortion is the leading cause of maternal mortality in Ghana. The objective of this study is to understand the social and cultural norms associated with induced abortion in Ghana and to extract the male partners’ role, if any, in induced abortion in Ghana. In-depth interviews and focus group discussions with post abortion patients, male partners of post abortion patients, family planning nurses, and obstetrician/gynecologists were utilized. The data is now being analyzed using matrices to organize the data into themes. Results will sensitize policymakers and programs to the social and cultural issues affecting the decision to induce an abortion, the actors involved in the decision and the abortion act itself, and the potential repercussions from induced abortion. Results may help define new avenues for unsafe induced abortion prevention as well as pathways to involve couples in the family planning.