Date of Completion

Spring 5-1-2025

Thesis Advisor(s)

Carrie Eaton

Honors Major

Health Care Management

Abstract

Abortion refers to the deliberate termination of a pregnancy, resulting in the removal or
expulsion of the embryo or fetus from the uterus, either spontaneously (miscarriage) or through medical procedures (O’Meara, 2023). Roe v. Wade (1973) is the landmark Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion in the United States followed by June 2022, when the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health (2022) decision marked the conclusion of the Roe v. Wade era, resulting in the prohibition of abortion in over a dozen states (Forouzan et al., 2023). Existing evidence suggests that providers practicing healthcare in states with abortion bans will exhibit a higher likelihood of moral distress when performing their jobs than those practicing in states without abortion bans or restrictions (Rivlin et al., 2024). Moral distress in nurses has been the cause of nurse burnout and one of the many reasons nurses have stopped practicing (Alimoradi et al., 2023). Objective: To investigate the experiences of registered nurses (RNs) involved in caring for women undergoing abortion and how state policies on abortion affect a registered nurse’s decision to continue practicing in that state. Method: A recruitment notice was sent through the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric, and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN) requesting participation in an electronic survey. Snowball sampling was also utilized by sending the recruitment flyer to personal contacts of both the PI and student investigator. Participants were asked to complete the demographic data including a series of open-ended questions. In this study I used Krippendorff’s (2019) method of content analysis along with an overall sentiment analysis. Results: Using content analysis, it was determined that method of administering the survey yielded a small number of responses. Therefore, there was a less direct correlation between state abortion policies and nurses' professional confidence or capacity to practice. However, one participant considered moving states due to restrictive abortion policies, which highlights the potential personal and professional strain imposed by abortion policies. Conclusion: There is a need for broader sampling and more diverse methodologies—such as interviews—to capture the nuanced perspectives of healthcare providers.

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