Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1538131
6 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 3 AUGUST 2025 NEWS A doctor's shocking necessity to ask patients to lie about their abortion IT is shocking when a doctor asks patients to lie but that is what pro- choice doctors are urging women to do when seeking medical assis- tance after an abortion. The rea- son for such advice is for women to avoid legal complications given that abortion is illegal and pun- ishable by a prison sentence. The issue came to light last week when a woman, who admitted having a medical abortion, was handed down a suspended sen- tence. The woman had gone to hospital after seeing heavy bleed- ing and told doctors she had taken abortion pills. A police report was filed and the woman was charged in court. The judgment caused outcry among pro-choice activists, who warned that the court decision could have a chilling effect on women needing medical treat- ment and stopping them from going to Mater Dei Hospital. In a Facebook post in the after- math of the court ruling, medical doctor Natalie Psaila Stabile ad- vised women who take abortion pills to lie if they need to go to hospital because of heavy bleed- ing. "If you need to go to hospital, you should never tell anyone that you've taken abortion pills," she wrote. But Psaila Stabile also urged women to "show sadness, upset and disappointment" at the loss of their pregnancy. "I apologise for asking you to lie and act falsely but this is the only way to keep you and your loved ones safe," Natalie wrote on her FB wall. When contacted, she said ask- ing women to lie was something they disliked but necessary so that women can receive medical assistance without the threat of imprisonment hanging over their head. "We do not like to tell women to lie but in this case, it allows them to get the medical treatment they deserve while avoiding the le- gal problems that could arise if a doctor or nurse decides to report the matter to the police," Natalie's mother, gynaecologist Isabelle Stabile, told MaltaToday. Isabelle explained that not tell- ing the truth about what caused the heavy bleeding will "not hin- der the medical treatment" in any way. It is akin to having a spontaneous miscarriage and doctors have no way of knowing the difference between a medi- cally-induced termination and a miscarriage. The treatment for any complications will also be the same. "It is shameful that we have to do this but it simply helps anxious women avoid the legal problems," Natalie said. Isabelle explained that medical abortions—the use of mifepris- tone and misoprostol—are "very safe" and according to the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines can be carried out up to the 12th week of pregnancy. "But there are, for a variety of reasons, the one-off cases where heavy bleeding occurs and the person would require hospitalisa- tion," Isabelle said, adding that in these cases, patients are advised to seek help but not say they had an abortion. Isabelle and Natalie run an abor- tion doula support service, which women can call for support and advice. Abortion is illegal in Malta ex- cept if a woman's life is in grave danger. Under any other circum- stances, abortion is not permit- ted and the woman is liable to imprisonment. The doctor per- forming an abortion is also liable to imprisonment and can lose their warrant that bars them from practising medicine. As a result, women often resort to medical abortions by buying the pills online and have them de- livered to their home. In the wake of the latest case, pro-choice organisations have reiterated their call for abortion to be decriminalised so that no woman could be sent to prison. Labour MPs Rosianne Cutajar and Ramona Attard, Parliamen- tary Secretary Rebecca Buttigieg, Health Minister Jo Etienne Abela and Labour MEP Daniel Attard also expressed outrage over the court judgment. Jo Etienne Abela said the law protecting doctor-patient confi- dentiality should be amended so that doctors do not feel obliged to file a police report if a wom- an seeks treatment following an abortion. KURT SANSONE ksansone@mediatoday.com.mt Pro-choice doctors Isabelle Stabile (left) and her daughter Natalie Psaila Stabile Government considering preventing doctors from reporting women who had abortions GOVERNMENT is consider- ing changes to the Professional Secrecy Act to ensure that doc- tors don't report women seeking post-abortion medical care with- out their explicit consent. Robert Abela was speaking on ONE Radio a few days after a woman was handed a 22-month prison sentence suspended for two years after having an abor- tion. The 28-year-old woman had gone to hospital after experienc- ing pain, where she informed doctors that she had an abortion after purchasing pills from the internet. Abela acknowledged that many had believed such legal conse- quences were unlikely, adding that the sentence shows that many Maltese women who use abortion pills often face medical complications afterward. However, fear of legal reper- cussions discourages them from seeking necessary hospital care, which puts their health and lives at risk. Abela stressed that the govern- ment does not plan to change Malta's abortion law or even opt for decriminalisation, instead proposing limiting doctors' abil- ity to report patients unless the woman agrees. In 2023, government tried and failed to protect women's health, instead opting to give doctors the ability to terminate pregnancies if a woman's health is in grave danger and could lead to her death. On Saturday, Abela defended the controversial planning re- forms, claiming that the new laws are expected to provide greater legal certainty and fairness in planning and appeal processes. On regularisation of illegal de- velopments, Abela said the new regulations aim to provide peace of mind, not punishment. While Abela was speaking on ONE, his predecessor, Joseph Muscat described government's handling of the changes as "a complete mess." Abela also discussed new agri- cultural land regulations intro- duced to support food security. The reform requires land regis- tration and annual maintenance, such as ploughing, but will not interfere with family use of the land. In cases where land owner- ship is unclear, the government will attempt to identify the right- ful owner before allowing farm- ers to use it. MATTHEW FARRUGIA mfarrugia@mediatoday.com.mt