Literature Review on Provision of Appropriate and Accessible ...

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Executive summary
The Crisis Pregnancy Agency [2] and the National Disability Authority
commissioned this systematic review of Irish and international
literature to <strong>Literature</strong> identify international <strong>Review</strong> Provision models of of Appropriate good practice and Accessible regarding
crisis pregnancy Support counselling to People with and an support Intellectual services Disability for women who are with an
Experiencing Crisis Pregnancy
intellectual disability experiencing a crisis pregnancy. A further aim of
this review was to inform the future development of guidelines for crisis
pregnancy counsellors and GPs on providing appropriate and accessible
support to people with an intellectual disability who are experiencing
crisis pregnancy.
For the purpose of the review, a crisis pregnancy is defined as “a
pregnancy which is neither planned nor desired by the woman concerned
and which represents a personal crisis for her”. [3] This definition
includes the experiences of those women for whom a planned or
desired pregnancy develops into a crisis over time due to a change in
circumstances. It is important to state that, within the review, not all
pregnancies experienced by women with an intellectual disability are
assumed to be a crisis pregnancy.
The main findings and commentaries of the review of the literature
include the following:
• The review of literature demonstrated international legislation,
structures and codes of practice on capacity to consent of an
individual with an intellectual disability incorporating consent to
medical treatment decisions. While there is protective legislation
internationally addressing capacity to consent to sexual relations
for this group, this area remains less developed in relation to
assessment of capacity to consent. In addition, there was only
one study retrieved over the course of the review relating to crisis
pregnancy among individuals with an intellectual disability, as
defined by the Crisis Pregnancy Agency.
2 Since this review was commissioned the Crisis Pregnancy Agency has been
integrated into the Health Service Executive (HSE) and is now the HSE Crisis
Pregnancy Programme. It is a national programme working within the Children
and Family Social Services Care Group in the HSE.
3 Crisis Pregnancy Agency definition of a crisis pregnancy, as set out by the
Statutory Instrument, S.I. No. 446 of 2001, the Crisis Pregnancy Agency
(Establishment) Order, 2001.