title: Health care providers' perceptions of and attitudes towards induced abortions in sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia: a systematic literature review of qualitative and quantitative data.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Unsafe abortions are a serious public health problem and a major human rights issue. In low-income countries, where restrictive abortion laws are common, safe abortion care is not always available to women in need. Health care providers have an important role in the provision of abortion services. However, the shortage of health care providers in low-income countries is critical and exacerbated by the unwillingness of some health care providers to provide abortion services. The aim of this study was to identify, summarise and synthesise available research addressing health care providers' perceptions of and attitudes towards induced abortions in sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia.
  
  
  METHODS
  A systematic literature search of three databases was conducted in November 2014, as well as a manual search of reference lists. The selection criteria included quantitative and qualitative research studies written in English, regardless of the year of publication, exploring health care providers' perceptions of and attitudes towards induced abortions in sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia. The quality of all articles that met the inclusion criteria was assessed. The studies were critically appraised, and thematic analysis was used to synthesise the data.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Thirty-six studies, published during 1977 and 2014, including data from 15 different countries, met the inclusion criteria. Nine key themes were identified as influencing the health care providers' attitudes towards induced abortions: 1) human rights, 2) gender, 3) religion, 4) access, 5) unpreparedness, 6) quality of life, 7) ambivalence 8) quality of care and 9) stigma and victimisation.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Health care providers in sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia have moral-, social- and gender-based reservations about induced abortion. These reservations influence attitudes towards induced abortions and subsequently affect the relationship between the health care provider and the pregnant woman who wishes to have an abortion. A values clarification exercise among abortion care providers is needed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health Sciences/IHCAR, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden. ulrika.rehnstrom@ki.se.
authors.forename: Ulrika
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Rehnström Loi
authors.affiliation: Department of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet/Karolinska University Hospital Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden. Kristina.Gemzell@ki.se.
authors.forename: Kristina
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Gemzell-Danielsson
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health Sciences/IHCAR, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden. Elisabeth.Faxelid@ki.se.
authors.forename: Elisabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Faxelid
authors.affiliation: Department of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet/Karolinska University Hospital Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden. mkl@du.se.|School of Education, Health and Social studies, Dalarna University, Falun, Sweden. mkl@du.se.
authors.forename: Marie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Klingberg-Allvin
mesh_terms: D000028:Abortion, Induced; D017954:Africa South of the Sahara; D001210:Asia, Southeastern; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D005260:Female; D006282:Health Personnel / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D011247:Pregnancy; D036301:Qualitative Research; D011788:Quality of Life