Incorporando la bioética ambiental a los cuidados materno-perinatales para disminuir los riesgos de la pan-sindemia en el proceso reproductivo / Incorporating environmental bioethics to maternal perinatal care to reduce the risks of pan-syndemic in the reproductive process / Incorporando a bioética ambiental ao cuidado perinatal materno para reduzir os riscos de pan-sindemia no processo reprodutivo

Antecedentes: Hasta el momento actual, el abordaje bioético de los cuidados materno-perinatales se proyecta desde la visión integral de la salud bio - psico - social, la perspectiva de derechos humanos y el enfoque de género. En general, no se ha incorporado a los cuidados materno-perinatales la bioética ambiental, que surge de la perspectiva de la salud ambiental; integrando la ética global, la perspectiva de la consiliencia, el derecho al ambiente saludable y la ética ambiental. La actual situación de crisis global por la combinación de la Pandemia COVID 19 y la Sindemia Global, que caracterizaremos como Pan-sindemia, incrementa los riesgos y daños en el proceso reproductivo, sobre todo en las poblaciones vulneradas en sus derechos. Justificación: Es necesario minimizar el efecto de la Pan-sindemia en el proceso reproductivo. En la agenda global, la humanidad debe revertir las causas que provocan la Pan-sindemia. Mientras tanto, los profesionales y equipos de salud deben reformular su rol a la hora de los cuidados materno-perinatales, incorporando a la clínica el derecho a un ambiente saludable para la reproducción. Perspectivas: Las modificaciones en la práctica clínica de los equipos de salud sexual y reproductiva deben orientarse a: - incorporar la bioética ambiental a los cuidados materno-perinatales desde la formación hasta la práctica clínica - desarrollar un abordaje integral de los grandes síndromes obstétricos perinatales, la prematurez y la restricción de crecimiento, para minimizar el impacto de la Pan-sindemia en el proceso reproductivo humano.

Background: Until now, the bioethical approach to maternal perinatal care is projected from the integral vision of bio-psycho-social health, the perspective of Human Rights and the gender perspective. In general, environmental bioethics, which arises from the perspective of environmental health has not been incorporated into maternal-perinatal care with global ethics, the perspective of consilience, the right to a healthy environment and environmental ethics. The current global crisis situation due to the combination of the COVID 19 Pandemic and the Global Syndemic, characterized as Pan Syndemic, increases the risks and damages in the reproductive process, especially in populations violated in their rights. Justification: It is necessary to minimize the effect of the Pan Syndemic on the human reproductive process. On the global agenda, humanity must reverse the causes of the Pan Syndemic. Meanwhile, health professionals and teams must reformulate their role when it comes to maternal-perinatal care, incorporating into the clinic the right to a healthy environment for reproduction. Perspectives: Modifications in the clinical practice of sexual and reproductive health teams should be aimed at: incorporate environmental bioethics into maternal perinatal care from training to clinical practice; develop a comprehensive approach to major perinatal obstetric syndromes, prematurity and fetal growth restriction, to minimize the impact of the Pan Syndemic on the human reproductive process.

Até o momento, a abordagem bioética da atenção materna perinatal se projeta a partir da visão integral da saúde biopsicossocial, da perspectiva dos direitos humanos e da perspectiva de gênero. De modo geral, a bioética ambiental não foi incorporada à assistência materno-perinatal que surge na perspectiva da saúde ambiental; integrando a ética global, a perspectiva da consiliência, o direito ao ambiente saudável e a ética ambiental. A atual situação de crise global devido à combinação da Pandemia COVID 19 e da Sindemia Global, que caracterizaremos como Pan-sindêmica, aumenta os riscos e danos no processo reprodutivo, especialmente em populações cujos direitos são violados. Justificação: É necessário minimizar o efeito da Pan-sindemia no processo reprodutivo. Na agenda global, a humanidade deve reverter as causas que causam a Pan-sindemia. Nesse ínterim, os profissionais e equipes de saúde devem reformular seu papel no que se refere à assistência materno-perinatal, incorporando à clínica o direito a um ambiente saudável para a reprodução. Panorama: As modificações na prática clínica das equipes de saúde sexual e reprodutiva devem ter como objetivo: - incorporar a bioética ambiental ao cuidado perinatal materno, desde o treinamento até a prática clínica - desenvolver uma abordagem abrangente para as principais síndromes obstétricas perinatais, prematuridade e restrição de crescimento, para minimizar o impacto da Pan-sindemia no processo reprodutivo humano.

Planejamento familiar: dilemas bioéticos encontrados na literatura / Family planning: bioethical dilemmas found in the literature / Planificación familiar: dilemas bioéticos encontrados en la literatura

Resumo O artigo traz resultados de revisão integrativa realizada conforme as recomendações do método Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses. O objetivo era investigar, à luz do modelo principialista, os dilemas bioéticos que emergem do planejamento familiar, de acordo com a literatura. Os dados foram levantados em pesquisa nas bases Medline, Lilacs e Scopus, por meio do cruzamento dos descritores "family planning and bioethics". Após aplicação dos critérios de elegibilidade, sete artigos publicados entre 2011 e 2018 foram selecionados para compor o estudo. Esses artigos foram submetidos a análise de conteúdo, como proposta por Bardin. Quatro categorias temáticas foram observadas: direito a liberdade e autonomia sexual/reprodutiva; interferência de governos no planejamento familiar e reprodutivo; barreiras socioculturais e religiosas ao planejamento familiar; e aprimoramento de tecnologias voltadas à manipulação de pré-embriões. Os resultados sugerem que os avanços científicos andam mais rápido do que as discussões bioéticas, criando dilemas práticos e teóricos.

Abstract This integrative review, based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses method, investigates the bioethical dilemmas that emerge from family planning, in light of principlism. Data were collected based on literature research conducted at the Medline, Lilacs and Scopus databases, using the descriptors "family planning and bioethics." After applying the eligibility criteria, seven papers published between 2011 and 2018 were selected for content analysis, performed according to Bardin's proposal. The study identified four thematic categories: right to freedom and sexual/reproductive autonomy; government interference in family and reproductive planning; sociocultural and religious barriers to family planning; and technological enhancement for pre-embryo handling. Results suggest that scientific advances move faster than bioethical discussions, creating practical and theoretical dilemmas.

Resumen Este artículo presenta los resultados de una revisión integrativa conforme al Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses. Su objetivo fue investigar, desde el modelo principialista, los dilemas bioéticos que surgen de la planificación familiar en la literatura. Para la recopilación de datos se llevó a cabo búsquedas en las bases de datos Medline, Lilacs y Scopus utilizando los descriptores "family planning and bioethics". Tras la aplicación de criterios de elegibilidad, se seleccionaron siete artículos publicados entre 2011 y 2018. Se aplicó a los artículos el análisis de contenido propuesto por Bardin. Se obtuvieron cuatro categorías temáticas: derecho a la libertad y autonomía sexual/reproductiva; interferencia del gobierno en la planificación familiar y reproductiva; barreras socioculturales y religiosas a la planificación familiar; y mejora de tecnologías relacionadas al manejo de los preembriones. Los resultados apuntaron que los avances científicos van más rápido que las discusiones bioéticas, ocasionando dilemas prácticos y teóricos.

The Initial Reproductive Health Visit: ACOG Committee Opinion, Number 811.

The primary goal of the initial reproductive health visit is to provide preventive health care services, educational information, and guidance, in addition to problem-focused care. The initial reproductive health visit should take place between the ages of 13 and 15 years. The scope of the initial visit will depend on the patient's concerns, medical history, physical and emotional development, and the level of care the patient is receiving from other health care professionals. All adolescents should have the opportunity to discuss health issues with a health care professional one-on-one, because they may feel uncomfortable talking about these issues in the presence of a parent or guardian, sibling, or intimate partner. Addressing confidentiality concerns is imperative because adolescents in need of health care services are more likely to forego care if there are concerns about confidentiality. Laws regarding confidentiality of care to minors vary by state, and health care professionals should be knowledgeable about current laws for their practice. Taking care to establish secure lines of communication can build trust with the patient and guardian, support continuity of care, ensure adherence to legal statutes, and decrease barriers to services. Obstetrician-gynecologists have the opportunity to serve as educators of parents and guardians about reproductive health issues. Preparing the office environment to include adolescent-friendly and age-appropriate reading materials, intake forms, and educational visual aids can make the general office space more inclusive and accessible. Resources should be provided for both the adolescent patient and the parent or guardian, if possible, at the conclusion of the visit. This Committee Opinion has been updated to include gender neutral terminology throughout the document, counseling topics with direct links to helpful resources, screening tools with direct links, addition of gender and sexuality discussion, and inclusion of trauma-informed care.

The Initial Reproductive Health Visit: ACOG Committee Opinion Summary, Number 811.

The primary goal of the initial reproductive health visit is to provide preventive health care services, educational information, and guidance, in addition to problem-focused care. The initial reproductive health visit should take place between the ages of 13 and 15 years. The scope of the initial visit will depend on the patient's concerns, medical history, physical and emotional development, and the level of care the patient is receiving from other health care professionals. All adolescents should have the opportunity to discuss health issues with a health care professional one-on-one, because they may feel uncomfortable talking about these issues in the presence of a parent or guardian, sibling, or intimate partner. Addressing confidentiality concerns is imperative because adolescents in need of health care services are more likely to forego care if there are concerns about confidentiality. Laws regarding confidentiality of care to minors vary by state, and health care professionals should be knowledgeable about current laws for their practice. Taking care to establish secure lines of communication can build trust with the patient and guardian, support continuity of care, ensure adherence to legal statutes, and decrease barriers to services. Obstetrician-gynecologists have the opportunity to serve as educators of parents and guardians about reproductive health issues. Preparing the office environment to include adolescent-friendly and age-appropriate reading materials, intake forms, and educational visual aids can make the general office space more inclusive and accessible. Resources should be provided for both the adolescent patient and the parent or guardian, if possible, at the conclusion of the visit. This Committee Opinion has been updated to include gender neutral terminology throughout the document, counseling topics with direct links to helpful resources, screening tools with direct links, addition of gender and sexuality discussion, and inclusion of trauma-informed care.

When accountability meets power: realizing sexual and reproductive health and rights.

This paper addresses a critical concern in realizing sexual and reproductive health and rights through policies and programs - the relationship between power and accountability. We examine accountability strategies for sexual and reproductive health and rights through the lens of power so that we might better understand and assess their actual working. Power often derives from deep structural inequalities, but also seeps into norms and beliefs, into what we 'know' as truth, and what we believe about the world and about ourselves within it. Power legitimizes hierarchy and authority, and manufactures consent. Its capillary action causes it to spread into every corner and social extremity, but also sets up the possibility of challenge and contestation.Using illustrative examples, we show that in some contexts accountability strategies may confront and transform adverse power relationships. In other contexts, power relations may be more resistant to change, giving rise to contestation, accommodation, negotiation or even subversion of the goals of accountability strategies. This raises an important question about measurement. How is one to assess the achievements of accountability strategies, given the shifting sands on which they are implemented?We argue that power-focused realist evaluations are needed that address four sets of questions about: i) the dimensions and sources of power that an accountability strategy confronts; ii) how power is built into the artefacts of the strategy - its objectives, rules, procedures, financing methods inter alia; iii) what incentives, disincentives and norms for behavior are set up by the interplay of the above; and iv) their consequences for the outcomes of the accountability strategy. We illustrate this approach through examples of performance, social and legal accountability strategies.

Conscientious object in nursing: Regulations and practice in two European countries.

BACKGROUND: The concept of conscientious objection is well described; however, because of its nature, little is known about real experiences of nursing professionals who apply objections in their practice. Extended roles in nursing indicate that clinical and value-based dilemmas are becoming increasingly common. In addition, the migration trends of the nursing workforce have increased the need for the mutual understanding of culturally based assumptions on aspects of health care delivery. AIM: To present (a) the arguments for and against conscientious objection in nursing practice, (b) a description of current regulations and practice regarding conscientious objection in nursing in Poland and the United Kingdom, and (c) to offer a balanced view regarding the application of conscientious objection in clinical nursing practice. DESIGN: Discussion paper. ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS: Ethical guidelines has been followed at each stage of this study. FINDINGS: Strong arguments exist both for and against conscientious objection in nursing which are underpinned by empirical research from across Europe. Arguments against conscientious objection relate less to it as a concept, but rather in regard to organisational aspects of its application and different mechanisms which could be introduced in order to reach the balance between professional and patient's rights. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Debate regarding conscientious objection is vivid, and there is consensus that the right to objection among nurses is an important, acknowledged part of nursing practice. Regulation in the United Kingdom is limited to reproductive health, while in Poland, there are no specific procedures to which nurses can apply an objection. The same obligations of those who express conscientious objection apply in both countries, including the requirement to share information with a line manager, the patient, documentation of the objection and necessity to indicate the possibility of receiving care from other nurses. Using Poland and the United Kingdom as case study countries, this article offers a balanced view regarding the application of conscientious objection in clinical nursing practice.

Crisis Pregnancy Centers in the U.S.: Lack of Adherence to Medical and Ethical Practice Standards: A Joint Position Statement of the Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine and the North American Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology.

Crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs) attempt to dissuade pregnant people from considering abortion, often using misinformation and unethical practices. While mimicking health care clinics, CPCs provide biased, limited, and inaccurate health information, including incomplete pregnancy options counseling and unscientific sexual and reproductive health information. The centers do not provide or refer for abortion or contraception but often advertise in ways that give the appearance that they do provide these services without disclosing the biased nature and marked limitations of their services. Although individuals working in CPCs in the U.S. have First Amendment rights to free speech, their provision of misinformation may be harmful to young people and adults. The Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine and North American Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology support the following positions: (1) CPCs pose risk by failing to adhere to medical and ethical practice standards, (2) governments should only support health programs that provide accurate, comprehensive information, (3) CPCs and individuals who provide CPC services should be held to established standards of ethics and medical care, (4) schools should not outsource sexual education to CPCs or other entities that do not provide accurate and complete health information, (5) search engines and digital platforms should enforce policies against misleading advertising by CPCs, and (6) health professionals should educate themselves, and young people about CPCs and help young people identify safe, quality sources of sexual and reproductive health information and care.

Sexual and reproductive rights under attack: the advance of political and moral conservatism in Brazil.

This article discusses political setbacks related to sexual and reproductive health and rights that have occurred in Brazil in the last 5 years (2014-2018) resulting from the significant role played by Christian (Evangelical and Catholic) parliamentarians in the legislative branch. Political initiatives aimed at prohibiting the affirmation of sexual and reproductive rights, while also curtailing debate about sexuality and gender in schools and universities, have raised "moral panic" within some elements of Brazilian society. The discursive strategies used around so-called "gender ideology" stimulated the formation of civil organisations which promote morality based on right-wing political positions. For this study, we looked at official documents and bibliographic material to examine how issues related to abortion rights, health care in cases of sexual violence, the prevention of sexually transmitted infections and homosexual citizenship are currently being suppressed, compromising the defence and advancement of the sexual and reproductive rights of women and the LGBTI+ population. The results point to the steady weakening of public policies that had become law in the 1980s, a time of Brazilian re-democratisation after two decades of military dictatorship. A wide range of civil, political and social rights, which saw significant growth and consolidation over the last 20 years, were rolled back after the resurgence of the extreme right wing in the federal legislature, culminating in the election of the current president in October 2018. However, social movements have increased in strength in the last few decades, especially the black feminist and LGBTI+ rights movements. These movements continue to provide political resistance, striving to affirm and protect all sexual and reproductive rights achieved to date.

Post-abortion care: Ethical and legal duties.

Women who experience complications from abortion, whether unlawful or lawful, induced or spontaneous, need immediate post-abortion care. Delay in providing care might cause women's avoidable disability, lost childbearing capacity, or death. Rendering care is not an abortion procedure nor illegal, and does not justify conscientious objection. Harm reduction strategies to reduce effects of unsafe abortion may legitimately inform women who might consider resort to abortifacient interventions of their rights to professional post-abortion care. Healthcare practitioners' refusal or failure to provide available care might constitute ethical misconduct and attract legal liability, for instance for negligence. States are responsible to ensure healthcare practitioners' and facilities' provision of post-abortion care, including both medical care and psychological support, delivered with compassion and respect for dignity, and to suppress stigmatization of patients and/or caregivers. Mandatory reporting of patients suspected of criminal abortion violates professional confidentiality. States' failures of indicated care might constitute human rights violations.

Long-acting reversible contraception: A route to reproductive justice or injustice.

This article presents information on unintended pregnancies and the ongoing efforts of policy makers to promote long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) to reduce the numbers of such pregnancies. Also discussed is the tension between the encouragement of LARC to promote the public's interests in achieving that goal versus the need to assure that all women can decide about their bodies and reproductive needs. Our discussion includes information, primarily from the United States, on (a) risks associated with unintended pregnancies, (b) LARC devices approved in the United States (copper intrauterine devices (IUDs), hormone IUDs, and implants), (c) public and social benefits of increasing the use of LARC, (d) disadvantages and barriers to using LARC, (e) dangers of promoting LARC in unjust ways, and (f) the meaning of reproductive justice and its connection to social justice. By sharing the information with the audience of this journal, we hope that it will be integrated into clinical work and research on mental health and development. We also hope that experts in those fields will become discussants in the conversation regarding women's reproductive health and social justice that is taking place in the United States and elsewhere.

Este artículo presenta información sobre embarazos no intencionales y el continuo esfuerzo de las autoridades para promover LARC (Contracepción Reversible de Larga Actuación) con el fin de reducir el número de tales embarazos. También se discute la tensión entre el aconsejar LARC para promover los intereses públicos de alcanzar esa meta vs. la necesidad de asegurar que todas las mujeres puedan ellas mismas decidir sobre sus cuerpos y necesidades reproductivas. Nuestra discusión incluye información, primariamente de los Estados Unidos (EUA), sobre: (1) riesgos asociados con embarazos no intencionales, (2) objetos de LARC aprobados en EUA (objetos intrauterinos de cobre -IUD-, IUD de hormonas, e implantes), (3) los beneficios públicos y sociales de aumentar el uso de LARC, (4) desventajas y barreras que presenta el uso de LARC, (5) peligros de promover LARC de maneras injustas, y (6) el significado de la justicia reproductiva y su conexión con la justicia social. Al compartir la información con el público de esta revista especializada, esperamos que la misma sea integrada dentro del trabajo clínico y la investigación sobre salud y desarrollo mental. También esperamos que los expertos en esos campos de estudio participarán activamente en la conversación acerca de la salud reproductiva de las mujeres y la justicia social que se lleva a cabo en EUA y otros lugares.

Cet article porte sur les grossesses involontaires et les efforts continus que font les responsables politiques pour promouvoir la contraception à long terme et réversible LARC (en anglais Long Acting Reversible Contraception) de façon à réduire le nombre de ces grossesses. Nous discutons aussi la tension entre l'encouragement de la LARC à promouvoir les intérêts publics pour arriver ce but et le besoin qui existe de s'assurer que toutes les femmes puissent décider d'elles-mêmes ce qu'elles veulent faire avec leur propre corps et leurs besoins sexuels. Notre discussion inclut des renseignements, principalement des Etats-Unis d'Amériques, sur: (1) les risques liés aux grossesses involontaires; (2) les dispositifs de contraception à long terme réversible approuvés aux Etats-Unis d'Amérique (dispositifs intra-utérins au cuivre (DIU), hormones DIU, et implants), (3) les avantages publics et sociaux qu'il y a à augmenter l'utilisation de la LARC, (4) les désavantages et les barrières à l'utilisation de la LARC, (5) les dangers de la promotion de la LARC de manières injustes, et (6) la signification de la justice reproductive et son lien à la justice sociale. En partageant ces informations avec les lecteurs de cette revue, nous espérons qu'elles seront intégrées dans le travail clinique et les recherches sur la santé mentale et le développement. Nous espérons aussi que les experts dans ces domaines pourront ainsi intervenir dans la conversation qui concerne la santé reproductive des femmes et la justice sociale qui se tient aux Etats-Unis et ailleurs.

Crossing U.S. Borders While Pregnant: An Increasingly Complex Reality.

In response to the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution of Ireland, which states that the fetus and the mother have equal rights to life and that nearly all abortions are therefore illegal, many Irish feminists sported luggage tags that read "HEALTHCARE NOT AIRFARE." The expression-which recently became a popular twitter hashtag for pro-choice citizens of Ireland leading up to the historic referendum to repeal that abortion ban-refers to the fact that pregnant women from Ireland have long been forced to travel to other European countries in order to legally terminate their pregnancies. In the United States, there is also a deep and challenging relationship between borders and reproductive health. However, that relationship is not understood as clearly as it appears to be in the Irish context. We urgently need to pay careful attention to the interconnections between U.S. border politics and reproductive health care access and to take concrete steps to address resultant injustices.

Emergency contraception in adolescents. A grey area in Italian legislation.

OBJECTIVE: To explore Italian legislation and the social climate regarding the issue of emergency contraception (EC) in adolescents. RESULTS: In recent years, in Italy, we have seen changes in the law and in attitudes towards EC. Since 2016, EC has been approved for sale as a non-prescription drug to women over the age of 18. However, the requirement for a prescription is still in force for women under 18. This raises questions such as the minor's ability to consent to family planning services to prevent pregnancy, and whether physicians require parental consent before providing an EC prescription to minors. This article explores these issues within the social and legislative context of adolescent reproductive health care, demonstrating a need for EC among Italian adolescents. CONCLUSION: Making EC difficult for minors to access seems to respond to a political stance that clashes with existing social needs and with medical evidence that shows that EC is safe and reliable for use in adolescents, and that the increased use of EC has no negative effects on regular, ongoing contraceptive use or encourages risky sexual behaviour. Future interventions by Italian policy-makers should target these themes in order to make EC easily available to adolescents throughout the country.

Research in Obstetric Fistula: Addressing Gaps and Unmet Needs.

Although obstetric fistula has likely plagued women since the beginning of time, very little research proportionally exists. This article summarizes the most substantial research on the topic and delineates research gaps and future needs. Existing research demonstrates that access to care is the underlying cause of obstetric fistula and that the first attempt at closure holds the highest chance at success, ranging between 84% and 94%. For simple cases, 10 days of a catheter is sufficient, although what constitutes as simple is unclear. Circumferential fistulas are at high risk for ongoing urethral continence. Psychosocial programs are helpful for all women, but those who are "dry" tend to reintegrate into society, whereas those still leaking need additional support. Prenatal care and scheduled cesarean delivery are recommended to avoid another fistula. Gaps in research include accurate prevalence and incidence, interventions to improve access to care, surgical technique, especially for complex cases, and ways to prevent ongoing incontinence, among many others. In all areas, more rigorous research is needed.