Implementation considerations

• Counselling can be provided to those seeking abortion services but also jointly to their partners, family members or other individuals, should the woman wish them to be present.
• While counselling should be made available and accessible, it should always be voluntary for women to choose whether or not they want to receive it.
• Counselling should be person-centred and may need to be tailored according to the needs of the individual; young people, survivors of sexual and gender-based violence or members of marginalized groups may have different information or counselling requirements.
• The content of and approach to counselling will need to be adjusted depending on the reason for seeking abortion services (e.g. induced abortion, intrauterine fetal demise [IUFD], fetal anomaly). Therefore, it is important for the counsellor to be aware of and sensitive to the individual’s situation and needs.
• Different service-delivery models exist for pre- and post-abortion counselling, e.g. remote access via hotlines and telemedicine and through approaches such as harm reduction counselling and communitybased outreach.

KEY HUMAN RIGHTS CONSIDERATIONS RELEVANT TO COUNSELLING

• Counselling must be entered into freely and voluntarily, i.e. it should not be mandatory. The right to refuse counselling when offered must be respected.
• Where provided, counselling must be available to individuals in a way that respects privacy and confidentiality.
• Counselling must be acceptable and of good quality, i.e. it must be provided in a way that can be understood by the recipient and it must be accurate and evidence based.
• Counselling must be non-discriminatory and non-biased.
• Dissemination of misinformation, withholding of information, and censorship should be prohibited.
• Counselling should be available to all persons without the consent or authorization of a third party. This includes counselling being available to adolescents without the consent or authorization of a parent, guardian or other authority. For further information and sources, please refer to Box 1.2 and Web annex A: Key international human rights standards on abortion.