On clinic grounds?

Tyrol in search of a location for abortions

Whether abortion will be possible on the clinic premises is still being examined.(Bild: Christof Birbaumer Kronenzeitung)

Two doctors in Tyrol need a surgery where they can perform abortions. But the search is proving difficult. There is a lot to be said for the clinic site, but the provincial government is hesitant. The hot potato "abortion on the clinic grounds" is still being examined.

It is drilling hard boards - very hard boards, it seems. Because even after the committee meeting on Wednesday, there is still no answer to the question of whether and when abortion will be possible on the Innsbruck clinic grounds. The current situation in Tyrol is as follows: So far, one doctor has taken care of abortions.

"Would be an important sign of self-determination"
So there is one doctor for every 170,000 women and girls of childbearing age. This doctor will retire in a few years, but two other female doctors have agreed to perform abortions. There is a desire to do this - according to the Vorarlberg model - on the grounds of the clinic. The green light has apparently been given from all sides, even though Provincial Councillor Cornelia Hagele (ÖVP) emphasizes that this is not a public service, but that only the space on the grounds of the Innsbruck clinic would be offered. "The possibility of offering treatment on the premises of the Innsbruck State Hospital is currently being examined", according to the office of the black state councillor.

The question of who will provide the anesthesia is apparently still unresolved. An "emergency solution" would be to fish among the hospital staff.

It would be an important sign for the self-determination of women and for breaking down role models. It should be an offer and not an emergency solution.

Zaliha Arslan (Grüne)

Zeliha Arslan (Green Party), member of the state parliament, takes a critical view: "What annoys me is that the offer at the clinic is only seen as an emergency solution - if you can't find a private provider for anesthesia. But it would be important for the state to confidently present an offer, because it would be an important sign of women's self-determination and of breaking down role models. It should be an offer and not an emergency solution." She also criticizes the pregnancy register once again: "If you implement such reactionary things as the abortion register, then you should finally get going with an abortion service."

The government is probably in no hurry, the next meeting on this topic is in three weeks' time.