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Self-reports of induced abortion: an empathetic setting can improve the quality of data
V Rasch1, H Muhammad, E Urassa
1Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Odense University Hospital, Denmark. v.rasch@dadlnet.dk
Objectives:
This study estimated the proportion of incomplete abortions that are induced in hospital-based settings in Tanzania.
Methods:
A cross-sectional questionnaire study was conducted in 2 phases at 3 hospitals in Tanzania. Phase 1 included 302 patients with a diagnosis of incomplete abortion, and phase 2 included 823 such patients.
Results:
In phase 1, in which cases were classified by clinical criteria and information from the patient, 3.9% to 16.1% of the cases were classified as induced abortion. In phase 2, in which the structured interview was changed to an empathetic dialogue and previously used clinical criteria were omitted, 30.9% to 60.0% of the cases were classified as induced abortion.
Conclusions:
An empathetic dialogue improves the quality of data collected among women with induced abortion.