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Aims: The aim of this study was to explain the process through which Australian nurses and midwives provide abortion care to people affected by gender‐based violence (GBV). Design: A constructivist grounded theory study. Methods: This study took place between 2019 and 2021. The lead author conducted semi‐structured interviews with 18 Australian nurses and midwives who provided abortion care. Participants were recruited through pro‐abortion, nursing and midwifery networks using a snowballing technique. Data collection and analysis proceeded using purposive and theoretical sampling until we reached data saturation. Findings: Participants revealed they underwent a process of working with or against the system contingent on the degree to which the system (the interconnected networks through which a pregnant person, victimized by trauma, travels) was woman centred. When participants encountered barriers to person‐centred abortion care, they bent or broke the law, local policy and cultural norms to facilitate timely holistic care. Though many participants felt professionally compromised, their resolve to continue working against the system continued. Conclusion: Conservative abortion law, policies and clinical mores did not prevent participants from providing abortion care. The professional obligation to provide person‐centred care was a higher priority than following the official or unofficial rules of the organizations. Impact: This study addresses the clinical care of people accessing abortions in the context of GBV. Nurses and midwives may act out against the law, organizational policies and norms if prevented from providing person‐centred care. This research is relevant for any location that restricts abortion through stigma, pro‐life influences or politics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims and objectives: To define the role and scope of the nurse and midwife within the global context of abortion. Background: An estimated 56 million women seek abortions each year; nurses and midwives are commonly involved in their care (Singh et al., 2018, https://www.guttmacher.org/sites/default/files/report%5fpdf/abortion-worldwide-2017.pdf). As new models of abortion care emerge, there is a pressing need to develop a baseline understanding of the role and scope of nurses and midwives who care for women seeking abortions. Design: The review design was Arksey and O'Malley's five‐stage methodological framework. The review follows the PRISMA‐ScR checklist. Methods: MEDLINE, CINAHL, Scopus and ScienceDirect were used to identify original research, commentaries and reports, published between 2008–2019, from which we selected 74 publications reporting on the nursing or midwifery role in abortion care. Results: Nurses and midwives provide abortion care in a variety of practice. Three themes emerged from the literature: the regulated role; providing psychosocial care; and the expanding scope of practice. Conclusions: The literature on nursing and midwifery practice in abortion care is broad. Abortion‐related practices are potentially over‐regulated. Appropriately trained nurses and midwives can provide abortions as safely as physicians. The preparation of nurses and midwives to provide abortion care requires further research. Also, healthcare organisations should explore person‐centred models of abortion care. Relevance to clinical practice: Abortion care is a common procedure performed across many healthcare settings. Nurses and midwives provide technical and psychosocial care to women who seek abortions. Governments and regulatory bodies could safely extend their scope of practice to increase women's access to safe abortions. Introduction of education programmes, as well as embedding practice in person‐centred models of care, may improve outcomes for women seeking abortions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]