Technical Areas

What is Postabortion Care?

Postabortion care (PAC) reduces maternal mortality and morbidity, and helps prevent repeat abortion by delivering reproductive health and family planning services. PAC interventions supported by USAID include:

• Emergency treatment of potentially life threatening complications, including a thorough history, physical examination, pelvic examination, and management of complications (which may include treatment of hemorrhage, infection and other problems, pain management, and vaccination to prevent tetanus). Learn more about USAID's efforts to prevent postpartum hemorrhage.
  


• Family planning and other counseling and selected services. Family planning helps women to avoid future unplanned pregnancies and the associated risk of another unsafe abortion or miscarriage. Access to family planning has consistently been associated with decreased rates of abortion. Furthermore, women receiving emergency care often have other reproductive health-related needs, including diagnosis and treatment of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and voluntary counseling and testing for HIV/AIDS.
  


• Community awareness and other support to help women get emergency treatment, recover and prevent future unplanned pregnancies.