PEDIATRICS Vol. 54 No. 6 December 1974, pp. 765-769
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Abortion Counselling: Focus on Adolescent Pregnancy

Carol Nadelson M.D.1

1 Psychiatric Service, Beth Israel Hospital, and Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston

The Supreme Court decision permitting abortion in the first trimester of pregnancy has resulted in a shift from preabortion psychiatric counselling to quick turnover at the expense of quality care. Adolescent girls, a high-risk population, should have experienced, nonjudgmental counselling in order to: (1) work through their feeling about pregnancy so that they can reach the best decision for themselves; (2) cope with the stress, guilt, and ambivalence they feel; (3) understand the psychological reasons for their non-use of contraceptives and thus avoid future unwanted pregnancies; (4) improve family relationships; and (5) understand the procedure itself.

Submitted on November 7, 1973
Accepted on January 14, 1974