Induced abortions
The quality description of the Register of Induced Abortions assesses the reliability and suitability of the statistics for different purposes.
Relevance of statistical data
The statistics on induced abortions contain data on the annual number of induced abortions. Data on induced abortions are provided by age group and wellbeing services county per 1000 women of the same age.
The statistical report also gives numbers concerning grounds for induced abortions, the gestational stage at which they are performed, previous abortions and deliveries among abortion patients, methods of abortion used, and the contraceptive methods that abortion patients have used or that have been planned for them.
The report aims to provide up-to-date information on induced abortions to health care professionals, administrators, planning officials and researchers working in the area of reproductive health.
The report text describes the concepts and definitions used in the statistics.
The collection of data is based on the Act on the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (668/2008) and on the Act on Induced Abortion 238/1970.
Description of methods
Data on induced abortions are collected from all the health care units in Finland that perform induced abortions.
According to current legislation (Act on Induced Abortion 238/1970, Decree on Induced Abortion 359/1970), the health care unit performing the procedure is required to report the case to the National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) within one month using a specific data collection form approved by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health.
Data in the 2022 statistical report are based on reports submitted to THL by 18th May 2023.
Year 2022 most data were collected to THL by electronic means. Units performing procedures complete an electronic form and save it in a secure format for THLs use or information transfers to THL as a database acquisition. Data check-ups are made regularly and any unclear cases and diagnoses are checked and ascertained by contacting the hospitals that have performed the procedure concerned.
Correctness and accuracy of data
Correctness of data depends on the quality of the data submitted by the data suppliers. In unclear cases, the data in the Register of Induced Abortions are compared with those in other registers (Medical Birth Register, Care Register). If necessary, the operating unit that has performed the procedure is contacted in order to ascertain the data. In addition, the data on abortions for fetal indication are compared to data recorded at Valvira and in the Register of Congenital Malformations.
Any errors identified in the statistics will be corrected. Even earlier statistics are updated in case of delays in reporting. These revisions do not, however, have any significant impact on the overall trend in the number of induced abortions.
The validation study with 2011 data showed that the coverage of the Register on Induced Abortions is excellent: 97.0 per cent of performed induced abortions was found in the register.[1].
Timeliness and promptness of published data
The statistics on induced abortions are produced by THL annually. The report, published in once a year, describes the number of induced abortions in the previous year.
Availability and transparency/clarity of data
The reports are published on the THL website. Statistical data is annually published in both national and international statistical publications (Nomesko, WHO, UN). The appendix tables to the statistical report are published as database tables which enable the reader to choose the data displayed.
Findata is authorised to disclose data in the Register of Induced Abortions to researchers for scientific research purposes.
Findata
Comparability of statistical data
The first act on induced abortion took effect on 1 July 1950. Statistics on induced abortions have been published since 1951. The current Act on Induced Abortion is from 1970. The most significant revision to the Act has been the Act amending the Act on Induced Abortion (572/1985) which introduced a Section 5a to the Act, allowing induced abortion on the grounds of potential or confirmed foetal defect before the 24th week of gestation (≤ 24+0).
Since 1983, data on induced abortions have been kept in an electronic THL database. Official statistical publications by the National Board of Health (one of THL’s predecessors) have been used as a source of information for earlier years. Data on the number of induced abortions is available as of 1950, and data from 1955 include information such as the grounds for abortion. As of 1958, there is even more data available, including the patient’s marital status, age, number of births and the number of procedures performed in each province. Time series on almost all variables recorded today are available from the mid-1970s onward.
Data for earlier years have been checked, for instance, by removing data that had been entered twice and by adding missing cases, so some data may deviate from previously published statistics. As a result, data may deviate from previously published statistics.
With regard to age-specific data, it should be noted that from 1994 onwards such data in the register refer to the age of the patient on the day of the procedure, whereas the data for preceding years refer to the age at the end of the year. The data for 1986–1993 have been calculated retrospectively using the patient's age on the day of the procedure. More accurate information on any factors influencing the interpretation of the statistics, such as legislative reforms, is given specifically for each table.
In the data collection form for the register, for some of the variables (e.g. contraceptive method, method of induced abortion, indication) it is possible to select more than one alternative. This should be taken into account when examining the tables.
The concepts and definitions of induced abortion have remained unchanged throughout this time. The statistics apply the ICD-10 classification system.
Clarity and consistency
The data on induced abortions in the Statistical Report are nationwide. Previous years' data are corrected, where necessary, retrospectively, but the changes have been fairly small. At the time of this report's publication, the 2021 data were corrected, and the total number of induced abortions grew by 28 cases.
