Possible overturn of Roe v. Wade reigniting abortion access conversation in Saskatchewan

In northwest Saskatchewan, physician Darcie McGonigle is used to treating a variety of patients with all sorts of needs.

However, there is a procedure she and other health care professionals outside of major Saskatchewan cities can’t perform.

“We are unable to provide surgical abortions here,” said McGonigle, who practices in Île-à-la-Crosse. “We don’t have an operating room; there are limitations as to why we can’t offer that here but there are certainly other parts of the province that can.”

Women can receive a medical abortion by taking mifegymiso up to 10 weeks’ gestation age. Once they’re outside of that window, a surgical abortion is performed which can only be done in Saskatoon or Regina. McGonigle calls this a big barrier.

“There are still lots of pockets in rural communities that might not have family physicians who are offering medical abortion in their local town,” McGonigle said. “There might not be a pharmacy that carries it (mifegymiso) so they might have to travel for that”

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Those barriers have been a hot topic this week ever since it was indicated the United States Supreme Court  could overturn Roe v. Wade.

It’s a decision Saskatoon Sexual Health executive director Heather Hale says is a transnational movement.

“We know when sexual and reproductive health needs are not met, individuals are deprived of rights to make critical choices about their own bodies, futures with cascading impacts on their families welfare as well as future generations,” Hale said.

1:54 Some Conservative MPs reluctant to discuss abortion rights

Abortions have been legal in Canada since 1969 and will stay that way. However, that doesn’t mean it’s always easy accessing one, especially in Saskatchewan.

“In Saskatoon, a person can get a surgical abortion up to 12 weeks and in Regina, they can get a surgical abortion up to 19 weeks,” Angie Kells, executive director of Saskatoon Abortion Support Network said.

The non-profit provides peer to peer assistance for people before, during and after an abortion.

She’s seen first hand the lengths people will go to receive sexual health care, such as driving hundreds of kilometres across Saskatchewan.

“We need people to be able to access abortion through the same limits across the province,” Kells said.

That message is echoed across Saskatchewan.

“All women should have access to this regardless of their geographical location,” McGonigle said.