Dr. Anthony McCarthy:

In terms of the evidence, the research papers that have highlighted that have been predominantly from the United States. We have to be careful about what we might think as human beings and what research evidence states. The research evidence that is based on tends to be from the United States where people are going into clinics where there might be crowds outside abusing them as they go in and where there may be threats as they go in. The research evidence is in that. That is the general attitude coming across. In terms of the individual ones it is very clear that particularly pressure from a spouse to have a termination can be a problem if an individual does not want one. Equally, a very strong family opposition to it, when a person still goes ahead, can be damaging. That is at a very personal level. I am not aware of any study that has been done specifically looking at the Irish question. Do I hear people in my office saying that? I do not see that many coming back. One woman said it was bizarre, it was dreadful, here she was terminating her much wanted baby and she thought it was going to be the worst day of my life but compared to the many weeks beforehand it was an extraordinarily kind occasion. She said it was almost lovely the way she was cared for and looked after, and people were so non-judgmental. She was comparing it specifically to how her family had responded to it. Yes, at human level I can say that. I do hear those stories but the research evidence is from America.