Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 15 November 2017

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution

Socioeconomic Context: Dr. Caitriona Henchion and Mr. Niall Behan, Irish Family Planning Association

1:30 pm

Mr. Niall Behan:

We have seen a shift over the last couple of years. At one point, we had a lot of women who came to our services with their minds made up. They were coming to our services for telephone numbers and addresses for abortion clinics in England. That has changed because those numbers are more easily available. What we tend to get these days is some women who have made up their mind about what they are going to do, but have a particular obstacle in their way or a particular issue that they want teased out - for example, if it is abortion, the issue could be around which procedure they might go for. They are looking for particular information. In respect of women who have not made up their mind and come to the counselling session, I would say around 50% of the women who come to us still have unresolved issues they want to work through. They could be leaning towards a particular option but they still have issues they want to know about and work through.

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