Day 2 | Session 4| Plenary | Getting a foot in the door - access for all
Beyond law reform: what does abortion access really mean in 2025?
The abortion law reform of 2020 was overshadowed by covid lockdowns, and while abortion should now be accessible for all, there are still many common misconceptions and barriers leading to limited abortion access.
This talk will use recent examples of barriers to care to highlight the access issues that still exist in 2025.
Dr Rachel Rapkin
Clinical Lead, Te Mahoe Unit
Rachel Rapkin is the clinical lead of Te Mahoe Unit and provides medical and procedural abortions to 20 weeks and beyond in Wellington Regional Hospital. In her role as clinical lead, she coordinates later abortions for patients throughout the region, including for those residing in Capital and Coast, Hutt Valley, Wairarapa and beyond, including Whanganui, Mid Central, Hawkes Bay, and Tairawhiti. She has also co-coordinated a feticide program in the hospital.
Rachel completed her Obstetrics and Gynaecology and Complex Family Planning sub-specialty training, including surgical abortion provision to 24 weeks gestational age, in the US in 2011 and 2013, respectively.
Opening the door to prevention - Familial Breast and Ovarian Cancer
Overview of Familial Breast and Ovarian Cancer - assessment, pathways and preventive options in New Zealand.
Dr Simone Petrich
Consultant - Te Whatu Ora Southern
Simone graduated from Heidelberg University in 1997 and received her Medical Doctorate the same year. She trained as an obstetrician and gynaecologist in Germany, which includes breast diseases. She provides care in O&G as well as a breast surgeon at Dunedin Hospital.
Her professional interests are reflected in her commitment as a senior clinical lecturer for the University of Otago in Surgery as well as O&G, involvement in a number of research projects and the founding of the New Zealand Familial Breast and Ovarian Cancer Trust and Group.
Nothing about us, without us: disrupting ableism during pregnancy and childbirth
Research shows that in Aotearoa New Zealand, the public health system can be difficult to navigate, particularly for disabled people. Physical, financial and attitudinal barriers mean that disabled people often miss out on the mainstream and specialised services they need to enjoy their right to the highest attainable standard of health (Donald Beasley Institute, 2022).
This is also true for disabled birthing people. Under Article 23 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, all disabled people have the right to found a family on an equal basis with others. However, anecdotal evidence suggests that existing barriers within the health system can magnify the challenges disabled people experience during pregnancy and childbirth.
While domestic research on these experiences is limited, in this presentation Dr Robbie Francis Watene, Disabled Research Lead at the Donald Beasley Institute, will draw on international data and evidence as well as her own experiences as a disabled birthing parent to discuss the impact of ableism during pregnancy and childbirth.
Dr Robbie Francis Watene
Disabled Research Lead
Donald Beasley Institute
Dr Robbie Francis Watene is a disabled leader, scholar and advocate from South Auckland. With 36 years lived experience of disability, Robbie has worked in the disability sector for over 17 years as a support worker, humanitarian documentarian, social entrepreneur, researcher, consultant, and advisor.
She has experience working with disabled people in France, Bangladesh, India, Mexico, Colombia and Ecuador, and has also spearheaded international research on gender, war and disability rights.
Robbie is Disabled Research Lead at the Donald Beasley Institute (DBI). Formally established in 1984, the DBI is a national and international leader in disability and family research. All DBI research projects are led by experienced/emerging disabled researchers. In this role, she oversees a range of disabled-led and disability inclusive human rights research projects, including 'Abortion is a Human Right and Health Issue: Disabled People’s Experiences of Abortion Services in Aotearoa New Zealand'.
Free communications: The availability of effective emergency contraception in Aotearoa New Zealand: a qualitative study
Emma McKay will share findings from a qualitative study run to hear about people’s experiences with EC in Aotearoa New Zealand, to aid with the consumer information aspect of an application for UA approval. This is important as there is no recent published qualitative research about EC in Aotearoa.
Participants spoke about accessibility, availability, affordability and acceptability of EC in Aotearoa. General contraception was also explored. Participant knowledge gaps of EC were identified; they spoke of both positive and negative experiences with EC.
This study provided valuable consumer information as to what measures need to be put in place for safe implementation of UA in Aotearoa.
Emma McKay
Medical Student
University of Otago, Christchurch
She has a keen interest in the field of obstetrics and gynaecology. She received an OMRS Summer Student Scholarship sponsored by Deloitte for 2024/2025, which gave her the opportunity to undertake research in the field of emergency contraception.