The judge presiding over the trial of Scott Roeder has opened the door to a dangerous legal defense for those who commit violent acts–even murder–against doctors who provide abortion.
Dr. Marianne Knox is a young abortion provider working in the South — defying statistics, and the fear factor.
Medical students in Canada are not receiving the training that they need to become abortion providers. Many medical schools do not include the subject in their curriculum, so students wishing to learn the procedure must take it upon themselves to become trained providers.
In the reproductive health curriculum I dream of at night, students who do not wish to comprehensively serve their patients are forced to defend their position. Quite simply, this is a curriculum where abortion is included where appropriate, just like any other common, safe procedure.
Medical school, by nature, often strips out a deeper social analysis when examining the health outcomes of different communities. The pro-choice movement within medical schools should always ensure that it is sensitive to the socioeconomic realities we find ourselves in and is responding to the full range of individuals’ reproductive health needs.
