Pregnancy Decision Making Support for Women or Pregnant People with Intellectual Disability Experiencing Violence/Reproductive Coercion
Tracks
Virtual Presentations
| Thursday, December 2, 2021 |
| 1:02 PM - 1:22 PM |
Overview
Ms Kari Vallury, Children By Choice & Ms Victoria Tucker, Wwild Svp Assn Inc.
Speaker
Ms Victoria Tucker
Trauma Counsellor
Wwild Svp Assn Inc.
Pregnancy Decision Making Support for Women or Pregnant People with Intellectual Disability Experiencing Violence/Reproductive Coercion
Biography
Victoria Tucker has worked for several years in the area of intellectual disability in the community sector, and in a number of roles at WWILD since 2010. For the last 3 years Victoria has worked as a Trauma Counsellor and Group worker. Hannah Sanson has worked in varied roles in hospital and community in particular with young people and people with intellectual and learning disabilities.
Kari Vallury
Senior Research Assistant
Children By Choice
Pregnancy Decision Making Support for Women or Pregnant People with Intellectual Disability Experiencing Violence/Reproductive Coercion
Abstract
People with disability experience 1.8 times higher rates of violence/abuse, including extreme forms of intimate partner violence/sexual assault, and greater barriers to accessing services. Reproductive coercion is increasingly recognised form of DFV, involving abusive behaviour aimed at establishing/maintaining control through pregnancy pressure, contraceptive sabotage and pregnancy outcomes.
Method
Children by Choice and WWILD collaborated to: conduct a literature review; facilitate 2 focus groups with self-advocates with lived experience of intellectual disability (ID) and 3 focus groups with 3 DFVSA services; reviewed existing resources and training modules, co-designed new collaborative training modules and held a community of practice workshop for QLD DFVSA workers in relation to learnings from above.
Results
The project found that:
• Early identification of support needs, and the support of strong family/partners, enabled pregnancy decision-making autonomy;
• Professional bias towards women with ID’s parenting capacity, and lack of adequate training in disability sexual/reproductive health rights, increases risk of poor quality of care, and health provider pressure to end pregnancy.
Method
Children by Choice and WWILD collaborated to: conduct a literature review; facilitate 2 focus groups with self-advocates with lived experience of intellectual disability (ID) and 3 focus groups with 3 DFVSA services; reviewed existing resources and training modules, co-designed new collaborative training modules and held a community of practice workshop for QLD DFVSA workers in relation to learnings from above.
Results
The project found that:
• Early identification of support needs, and the support of strong family/partners, enabled pregnancy decision-making autonomy;
• Professional bias towards women with ID’s parenting capacity, and lack of adequate training in disability sexual/reproductive health rights, increases risk of poor quality of care, and health provider pressure to end pregnancy.
Biography
As a researcher with Children by Choice in Queensland, Kari supports the organisation to generate and implement an evidence base, in partnership with local and national partners, to underpin and promote reproductive rights and quality reproductive health service provision. Kari is also completing a PhD in public health, measuring experiences and impacts of perceived abortion stigma in Australia. She has a background in global public health, rural health and sexual and reproductive health and rights research and policy, with experience in the community sector, universities and the United Nations Population Fund.
