The Quebec College of Physicians says the province's abortion clinics are safe and don't need to be subject to Quebec's new rules governing out-of-hospital medical procedures.
The head of the College, Dr. Yves Lamontagne, said Tuesday that the clinics serve a crucial role in providing abortions and are safe as long as staff follow sanitation procedures.
About 30,000 abortions are performed in Quebec every year and about 5,000 take place in clinics.
Quebec wants all medical procedures to be performed in operating rooms, and the proposal caused a firestorm among abortion clinics that said they won't be able to afford the expensive upgrades.
Some said they would close rather than conform to the law, and Health Minister Yves Bolduc has found himself under fire for saying his proposal was based on the College's recommendation.
Lamontagne has denied Bolduc's assertion, and opposition parties have been calling on Bolduc to resign.
Bill 34
Bill 34 requires that all medical clinics that perform surgery have fully equipped operating rooms by September 30.
Under current regulations, abortions can be performed in a doctor's office, as long as all the materials and instruments used are sterile.
Lamontagne said only minor changes, if any, should be made to clinics to ensure they are sterile.
"Little things, like if you have to wash your hands, of course, you don't have to go to the basement and come back to the surgery room," he explained.
The College of Physicians also recommended that doctors wear the proper clothing and use sterile equipment when conducting the procedures.
Physician Francine Leger at the Morgentaler Clinic said those regulations are already in place.
"For us it's not a change, we always do that," said Leger.
Leger said early-term abortions are uncomplicated, and are often performed in an exam room not only to cut costs, but also to cut down on patient anxiety.
"Women usually want a safe place, but intimate, and a human setting. We cannot have that in an operating room," she said.
Specialists, general practitioners, nurses and the opposition said Bill 34 contains some elements that are unnecessary, especially since there is no evidence that women undergoing an abortion in Quebec are receiving inadequate medical care.
