The Marie Stopes centre in Gandhi Square is conveniently located in the Johannesburg CBD, making it easily accessible for anyone who needs reliable, trustworthy sexual health care or advice.
It’s also a safe place to go for a legal abortion in Joburg. In case you didn’t already know, abortions are legal in South Africa, and any woman is entitled to terminate up to 20 weeks into her pregnancy.
If abortions are legal in SA, why do some women still go to illegal providers, you may ask. There are lots of reasons for this, and they range from not knowing where to find legal abortions to fearing stigmatisation by their communities, judgement by clinic staff and concerns about confidentiality and cost.
Some ladies choose illegal abortion providers because they discovered their pregnancies too late for a legal abortion. According to South African law, abortion is legal up to 20 weeks into the pregnancy, and women are entitled to have safe abortions at no cost when using the public health system.
Illegal abortions are a huge problem in the Joburg CBD, and all over SA. You’ve probably seen flyers advertising ‘safe’, ‘pain-free’, ‘quick’ and ‘cheap’ abortions littering the streets and stuck to lamp posts. These adverts, created by illegal abortionists, are targeted at disadvantaged, vulnerable women. They do not abide by the strict medical laws governing this specialised practice, and as such, they put these women’s lives at risk.
At Marie Stopes Gandhi Square, we’re passionately pro-choice and our abortion services are approved by the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA). Our centres, including this one, are recognised for the quality of their clinical services and the non-judgemental, client-friendly approach of the staff. All our clients and their partners are provided with counselling in a caring, non-threatening environment, and confidentiality is assured at all times.
At the Marie Stopes Gandhi Square centre, we offer a complete package of sexual healthcare services, including short and long-acting contraceptives, emergency contraception, pregnancy tests and scans, pap smears and cervical cancer screening, women’s wellness exams, HIV counselling and testing, and STI screening and management.
The centre is located on the first floor of Umoya House, corner of Rissik Street and Main Road, Gandhi Square, Johannesburg. The team is made up of centre manager Ephraim, nurses Ntabiseng and Tshepiso, administrator Nombulelo, and general assistant Tumi.
To make an appointment, please phone 0800 11 77 85 or make a booking online.
Lastly, be sure to NEVER use an illegal abortion provider. It is critical that you DO NOT go to any providers that:
- Perform abortions outside the constraints of the law (after 20 weeks pregnancy), or outside of public hospitals or other designated centres.
- Operate in unsafe areas and/or do not have a legitimate clinic.
- Have only a cell phone number and offer to meet you on a street corner.
- Cannot give you their Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) registration number.
- Use dangerous methods such as injecting poisonous liquids into the womb, inserting objects intended to dislodge the foetus or issuing tablets that are not prescribed by a doctor or registered nurse.
- Administer medical abortions (a process involving tablets) after the ninth week of pregnancy.
- Do not perform physical examinations, or take a medical history, or provide a test/scan to confirm the stage of the pregnancy.
- Do not follow basic infection prevention methods, such as wearing latex gloves, having running water and clean linen, and having separate, dedicated bins for the disposal of medical waste.
- Do not counsel you to inform you of all your options when facing an unplanned pregnancy.
- Do not offer follow-up appointments and contact information in case of problems or questions after the procedure.
- Sell you medical abortion tablets over the Internet or in the street without the required clinical precautions.
By using illegal abortion providers, you risk your fertility and your life. An illegal abortion can leave you unable to have children, or worse, it could kill you. Never use illegal providers and advise friends or loved ones to do the same.
At the Marie Stopes Gandhi Square centre, you’re assured of caring, confidential help, whatever your sexual healthcare issue. Make your appointment now and let us provide you with a safe abortion, HIV and STI testing and counselling, contraceptive advice or women’s wellness check-ups.