Dr. Rhona Mahony:

While the incidence of suicide is extremely rare, as Dr. Coulter Smith points out, that is not the same thing as the incidence of suicidal ideation. It is very difficult for anyone to identify the incidence of suicide as cases are often returned as open verdicts in the Coroner's Court. I do not believe we have accurate data although we can say with certainty that it is extremely rare. It is also the case that some women will travel to other jurisdictions to terminate their pregnancies. It is therefore difficult to assess the true incidence of suicide, suicide ideation and suicidal intent.

There will always be a lack of certainty in cases because what we deal with is medical probability. The assessment of a risk to life in the context of medical disorder is a medical decision and doctors must be trusted to make the decisions. This is our area of expertise and our job. What we request is legal protection in carrying out our task. I was asked if there is any specific obstacle. I take issue with sections 58 and 59 of the Offences Against the Person Act. They are problematic and need to be addressed and the European Court of Human Rights agrees with me.

When we extrapolate the extra terminations of pregnancy that we anticipate the numbers are tiny. In my hospital last year we had three cases in which we had to intervene prior to foetal viability because of our concern that a woman would die. There is a tiny number of cases, 30 or 40 is an overestimate. The figure nationally is more likely to be between ten and 20. We never kill a foetus. That is not our aim. Occasionally it is required that we deliver a pregnancy before the baby is viable or capable of surviving in our neonatal intensive care unit. When there is any possibility at all that we can preserve the life of the baby we will do so. We are able to do so from very low gestations, from 23 weeks on and in those cases Members can be very certain that we will make every effort to preserve life.

In other cases we are required to terminate a pregnancy as part of a treatment of a medical condition because we feel a woman will die. That is not killing the baby. That is simply delivering the baby before it is viable. There is a difference. It is always our wish to preserve life and society should be very reassured about that.

There is a changing demographic. Older women are becoming pregnant. They have different disorders. They are more likely to have coincidental medical disorders. It is very important that doctors have the flexibility to do their duty with legal protection.