Planned Parenthood is widely perceived as an organisation primarily focused on securing women’s rights against a wave of abortion restrictions in several parts of the United States. This includes Georgia’s controversial “heartbeat bill” that many celebrities have publicly protested. In Saint Lucia, however, the organisation is generally associated with condom distribution, not with abortion.
Formerly known as Family Planning, the St. Lucia Planned Parenthood Association (SLPPA) is an affiliate member of the International Planned Parenthood Federation and the Caribbean Family Planning Affiliation. It is a non-profit that currently employs a staff of twelve. It contracts doctors, therapists and counsellors. SLPPA works directly through the Ministry of Health, the St Lucia Crisis Centre, Departments of Gender Relations and Human Services, the AIDS Action Foundation and other such bodies.
The only abortion-related services offered are pre- and post-abortion counselling. SLPPA’s acting executive director Geralda Bray said, “Right now we adhere to the laws of Saint Lucia; we do not offer abortion services.” Bray adds that the SLPPA promotes pregnancy prevention through contraceptives as a method of avoiding abortions. Still, as is part of the mandate of Planned Parenthood’s international body, the organisation hopes to achieve safe and legal abortion in Saint Lucia someday.
“I know we watch a lot of TV and we tend to associate a lot with the American culture,” Bray observed, “but getting down to abortion, we have a long way to go because of the strong position of the Catholic Church and other religious groups. I think that the will is there among healthcare providers and women, but when you look at the individuals who can really impact the decision, I think it would be an uphill battle.”
In the past, the SLPPA has attempted to work with the clergy on abortion issues and share information about the negative impact that religious pressure can have on women’s health and decisions. “We need to be open-minded,” said Bray. “We need to give women all the options so that they can live healthy lives and not have their fertility impacted by poor choices.”
The organisation has chosen not to concentrate on abortion issues, partly because the general consensus on abortion is not likely to change soon, and also because SLPPA has a wide range of other services and responsibilities: cancer screening for the reproductive organs for both men and women; contraceptive services; gynaecological services; screening, diagnoses and treatment for sexually transmitted diseases; general health screening—hypertension, glucose, weight, pre- and post-natal care; counselling services
for individual and family; educational sessions with faith-based and grassroots organisations; and the peer helpers programmes in secondary and primary schools.
“Last year we had over 72,000 services given. For individuals under 24 we did 17,000 and for individuals 25 and over we did over 55,000 services,” said Bray. The SLPPA still wants more Saint Lucians to take advantage of its services because certain demographics are not up to standard on their healthcare. But Bray said there are hindrances. She claims that the religious culture earlier mentioned is not limited to abortion issues, and young people raised in religious groups are sometimes not privy to the dangers of unsafe sexual and reproductive practices. Bray insists that if these organisations do their part, the youth will have better control of their healthcare.
There are other factors. “Right now, the age of consent is 16 but a 16-year-old cannot see a doctor without a parent present,” said Bray. “If they can consent to sex, then they should be able to visit a doctor about sexual health without parents being present.”
Then there is the challenge of depleting funding options, for which Bray blames reduced interest on the part of international donors. “People want to send their money where they can have the most impact,” she says, “In the Caribbean our population obviously is not as large as, say, Africa or Central America. Sometimes, there is a problem with data collection. We do a lot of work but sometimes the collecting of the data leaves much to be desired. Ministries don’t have the necessary data to make a persuasive case to the donors; sometimes we find ourselves missing out on opportunities because of that.” She argues that it’s easier to get funding for infrastructure than for social services.
By Bray’s account, the health ministry offers just a little over EC$30,000 annually. “Well, to me it’s an embarrassing figure. I have been to the Ministry of Health, the finance minister. They say they are financially over-stretched.” (Health Minister Mary Isaac redirected this reporter to the Department of Gender Relations for comment.)
As part of its restructuring period in the latter part of 2020, the SLPPA is aiming to become self-sustaining by reaching out to more Saint Lucians to use its services by raising public awareness of sexual and reproductive healthcare. For
Bray, it’s important the SLPPA keeps up its work to help combat common myths about healthcare, such as those associated with bush medicine, and to counter stigmas and attitudes, such as the male population’s demonstrated lack of interest in healthcare.
The SLPPA also focuses on providing services for marginalized groups, including patients from the Vulnerable Persons Unit and members of United and Strong and the LGBTQI community.
“We provide healthcare,” she said. “We need to take care of our people. The quality of life for every Saint Lucian must always be a priority.”
