Gateway Health has called for Wagga and Griffith hospitals to offer surgical abortions, as Albury Wodonga Health revealed it is experiencing increasing demand for services.
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Gateway Health's sexual health nurse Lauren Coelli said AWH was in talks with its Riverina counterparts, encouraging them to offer surgical terminations locally.
Earlier this year, Gateway Health revealed 60 per cent of patients attending during the first eight months they began co-ordinating surgical abortion for AWH, came from the Murrumbidgee catchment.
A spokeswoman for AWH confirmed the organisation was in talks with Murrummbidgee Local Health District, which runs Griffith and Wagga hospitals, but did not say what these discussions entailed.
"Albury Wodonga Health is experiencing a recent increase in demand for termination services and we have been working with other health services including the MLHD to ensure women receive the care they require," a statement said.
"Albury Wodonga Health has always been supportive of safe, appropriate care delivered locally wherever possible."
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Ms Coelli said AWH was looking at ways to deal with increasing demand for surgical abortions, especially from women coming from outside the region.
"We do see a number of people from everywhere and the reason for that is there isn't many surgical termination services in NSW outside Canberra and Sydney," she said.
"AWH are now looking at their catchment area and in talks with Wagga and Griffith who both have public hospitals with gynaecological services that don't offer surgical term of pregnancy."
"They're in talks with both areas to encourage them to offer their own surgical terminations." AWH did not say whether they were considering providing surgical abortions only to women within its catchment area, but said the organisation "does not discriminate against any person based on where they live. All people are accepted and services are provided based on clinical need."
Ms Coelli said Griffith and Wagga hospitals should be offering surgical abortions in their region, so women don't have to travel hundreds of kilometres.
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Digital journalists with The Border Mail.
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