Dr Kate Whitehouse is an abortion surgeon at MSI UK. She also works as a Research Consultant for the World Health Organisation, an Evidence Advisor at the British Society of Abortion Care Providers and is an Editor at the European Journal of Contraception and Reproductive Healthcare. Dr Whitehouse’s career has seen her work in the UK, Europe, and the US, where she is originally from. We discuss her career, her harrowing experiences with anti-choice harassment, and the ongoing threats to reproductive choice in the UK.
“Abortion is being weaponised as a topic not because politicians care about it – but because it is a way to divide people.”
How did you start working in abortion care?
I did obstetrics and gynaecology training in Texas, which was a very eye-opening experience. Prior to this, I had done most of my education and training in the New York, New Jersey area of the US, which is a very liberal area.
“Now, access is far more limited.”
It was shocking to see the limited resources and limited access to abortion in Texas at that time (around a decade ago). In theory, you could access abortion care up to around 20 weeks’ gestation – but there were lots of barriers to accessing care. For example, there were long waiting periods, forced viewing of ultrasounds, scripts that we had to read including myths around abortion and cancer. People even had to listen to the heartbeat. Now, years later, access is far more limited in many U.S. states, with near-total bans in some. There were very few doctors trained in abortion later in pregnancy where I worked. If these people were on leave or sick, you could run into a situation where no-one was available to treat patients.
How did your experiences encourage you to pursue abortion as a specialty?
The treatment people faced when trying to access abortion care blew my mind, and I wanted to get training to be one of the doctors that could do these procedures, help these people, and pivot to abortion becoming my specialty.
I trained in Hawaii, and this is where I developed my additional surgical skills and started doing clinical research. From there, I ended up doing some work at the World Health Organisation (WHO) – originally as a Medical Officer, then as a Research Consultant.
I went to Switzerland in 2015, and this is where I got more involved with global research guidelines, systematic reviews and evidence generation on abortion. From there, I went to work for another abortion provider in the UK. I worked there for around 6 years in a leadership role where I also sometimes did some clinical work. That’s how I got into working in abortion care in this country.
Now, I work for MSI UK two days a week and do some consulting work with the WHO.
What’s your reaction to the recent advancements in abortion care in the UK? For example, the implementation of abortion clinic Safe Access Zones, the introduction of telemedicine, and the recent vote to reform UK abortion law?
“The stigma is still there for the patient”
Most people who need an abortion can get one legally, and this reform to the law will mean that no one has to fear prosecution for ending their own pregnancy. However, I think the stigma is still there for the patient. These legislative changes do help with reducing stigma, but like so many areas of women’s health the stigma is still there. It’s not only abortion; there is a degree of stigma for many other areas of women’s health like periods and menopause too.
Seeing patients face to face, the stigma for some of them can be very serious. In the US, we have seen the fight for abortion access in the last couple of decades and in some ways the more it is spoken about and fought for the more we normalise it. On the other hand, that can have a polarising effect which isn’t always helpful.
In the UK, it can sometimes feel like it is taken for granted and not something we think about – assumed to be a ‘private’ matter that you shouldn’t talk about, when in fact it is common, and most people in this country are pro-choice.
What would you say the biggest threat to reproductive rights in the UK is right now?
“Misinformation, disinformation and propaganda surrounding medical care is rife.”
Misinformation, especially online, is a big threat. There’s a rise in false information on social media, and there are particular issues with some of the content on TikTok. We know that this can influence people. Young people and women often feel ignored or dismissed by medical professionals or institutions, which can lead to a greater suspicion of experts. We want to make sure people know that at MSI UK, we believe you, we take you seriously, and we are here to provide information and advice you can trust.
Medical misinformation grew hugely during the COVID pandemic and has proved a risk for healthcare in general ever since.
“Anti-abortion influence and sentiment is being pushed to the UK from the US.”
There’s also, worryingly, anti-abortion influence and sentiment being pushed to the UK from the US, funded by US-based anti-choice groups. This was covered in a recent article by the New York Times. In my opinion, abortion is being weaponized as a topic not because politicians care about it – but because they believe it is a way to divide people. The good news is that while abortion is often framed as divisive, in reality, 90% of people are pro-choice, and 1 in 3 women has an abortion. Despite the best efforts of the anti-choice movement, this country has a pro-choice consensus.
Have you encountered anti-choice (anti-abortion) backlash for your work?
Most of my negative experiences have not been in the UK – especially now we have Safe Access Zones surrounding abortion clinics here.
“We had aggressive protestors with signs at the centre gates all day long”
I have had far more aggressive experiences in the US. I worked at Planned Parenthood in Houston, Texas, with tight, gated security. We had aggressive protesters with signs at the centre gates all day long.
They’d even bring a big coach with them that was essentially a crisis pregnancy centre*. They often set them up next to legitimate abortion clinics, so they can take advantage of people who go to the wrong place.
“Anti-choice people have even shown up at colleagues’ homes.”
It’s not only outside clinics or centres. While working on a clinical trial in Hawaii, anti-abortion groups found my study on a registry, and I faced severe harassment. There were multiple articles from extreme media outlets, hateful emails, harassing calls, and a protest at the university. You never think you’re going to need to protect yourself from this.”
There is also an anti-choice website which shared details of people providing abortion care in the US – including my old home address. This terrified me. I had to take security measures, and because of the number of attacks on US abortion clinics, security is thankfully available. They still have me listed on the website, by the way, in my UK role. Anti-choice groups follow providers all over the world. And the situation is even worse now in the US, since the reversal of Roe v Wade.
Has anti-choice activity ever made you reconsider your career choice?
No. I was obviously relieved when I was moving that my home address on this anti-choice website would no longer be accurate, but none of this ever deterred me from working in abortion.
“I am not going to be intimidated out of doing important work.”
I feel very strongly about reproductive healthcare, and I would still consider working in the US again. In fact, I think it has made me feel even more defiant – I am not going to be intimidated out of doing important work like this.
My favourite part of working in abortion care is supporting patients, whatever their experience may be. For some people, having an abortion can be challenging – for others, abortion can be a joyful moment. It can be a huge relief and liberation. Whatever their feelings are, I really enjoy supporting everyone accessing abortion care, and advocating for them throughout.
I’m also passionate about providing evidence-based care, working as part of a multidisciplinary team to provide patient-centred care.
*A ‘crisis pregnancy centre’ is a centre established by an anti-choice organisation with the aim of dissuading people from accessing abortion care.
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