The WA Abortion Care Clinical Guidelines (PDF 2.11KB) are now available to assist healthcare professionals in providing care to people requesting an abortion.
On 27 March 2024, the Abortion Legislation Reform Act 2023 (WA) came into effect in Western Australia (WA).
The new legislation aims to promote equity and reduce barriers for women, girls, and pregnant people accessing abortion care services in WA.
To assist healthcare professionals providing or working in abortion care, interim Abortion Care Clinical Guidelines (interim guidelines) were developed to support implementation of a new framework relating to abortion under Part 12 C of the Public Health Act 2016.
The interim guidelines were developed by the Women and Newborn Health Service (WNHS), North Metropolitan Health Service (NMHS) clinical, consumer, and subject matter experts who adapted the industry respected Queensland Clinical Guidelines: termination of pregnancy.
Throughout 2024, the Department of Health and WNHS worked closely together to:
- develop cultural consideration statements for Aboriginal people, and for those who identify as culturally and linguistically diverse
- conduct an online consultation process to engage and consult with the abortion care sector providing care to people in WA.
Key feedback was provided from the online consultation, which resulted in the finalised WA Abortion Care Clinical Guidelines.