In this ThinkBites episode, three researchers Erica Millar, Camille Maes and Martha Nicholson share experiences of conducting research with abortion providers in three health care systems – Australia, Italy, and Northern Ireland. 

In part one, they share what motivated them to start working in abortion research, the contexts that they work in, and the contested identities of health professionals who provide abortion care in each setting, in particular midwives. Their discussion frames abortion as both an essential health issue and a key political issue. 

In part two, Erica, Camille and Martha take a deep dive into the intersection of the role of midwives and abortion care. They discuss institutional abortion stigma, objectification of female-dominated health professions and misunderstood policies on conscientious objection, and what this means for the ways that abortion knowledge is contested or absent from many institutions of work and learning. They talk about how abortion care is intrinsically linked with relations of power: gender-based power, social inequalities, medical dominance, and institutional authority. Along the way, you’ll hear about Erica, Camilla, and Martha’s research approaches, including their research frustrations and hopes for the future. 

Participants

Martha Nicholson: PhD Student in the Reproduction, Sexualities and Sexual Health research group at the Open University in the UK. Current research is a feminist ethnography on how nurses and midwives learn about abortion care in Northern Ireland.

Erica Millar: Senior Research Fellow in Crime, Justice & Legal Studies, and Lecturer at La Trobe University in Australia. Current research explores institutional abortion stigma: Identifying, understanding, and enacting the institutional and cultural change required for equitable access.

Camille Maes: PhD Student in the Department of Social Sciences of Gender and Sociological Theory at the University of Liège in Belgium. Current research is exploring midwives’ roles in abortion care in Italy.

Hosted and produced by Martha Nicholson.

To share feedback, please email Martha.nicholson@open.ac.uk