The promised return of abortion services to Townsville has been delayed by staff shortages, more than a year after the closure of a major provider.
Women across North Queensland have had to travel hundreds of kilometres to Brisbane to access surgical terminations since Marie Stopes closed its doors in Townsville, Rockhampton and Southport in 2021, citing financial pressures.
Townsville Hospital and Health Service pledged in October to provide access to surgical abortions up to 14 weeks from February 2023 after receiving $1 million from the state government to restore the service.
But the public health system is yet to fill the gap, with the service pushed back to mid-March.
In a statement, chief executive Kieran Keyes said there had been "minor delays" in the recruitment of specialist staff.
Mr Keyes said the hospital had been working hard to restore the service to the community and supported women to access services in Brisbane.
The hospital currently offers surgical terminations for complex abortions where there are significant concerns about the mother or baby's safety.
Medical abortions via a pill are the most common option for women seeking a termination of pregnancies up to nine weeks.
For pregnancies beyond nine weeks, a surgical termination is often required.
Children By Choice chief executive Daile Kelleher said it was disappointing that the surgical termination service had been delayed.
"There has been more than enough time to introduce services," she said.
Ms Kelleher said difficulties in finding specialist staff was not unique to Townsville.
"There is a real problem at the moment with the workforce and getting enough people who are willing to provide those services," she said.
"We're really looking to the government and Queensland Health to be making sure they are workforce planning.
"Every person in every hospital should be able to access the full suite of reproductive health care, including abortion."
Once established, the Townsville Hospital service will be run by a multidisciplinary team including an obstetrician, clinical nurse, nurse navigator, social worker and Indigenous liaison officer.
Postcode lottery
Abortion has been legal in Queensland for more than four years, but barriers still prevent women in regional and remote parts of the country from accessing termination services.
The Federal Senate in September last year voted in favour of a motion from Greens' Senator Larissa Waters to create an inquiry into abortion services.
The findings are due by the end of next month.
Ms Kelleher said she hoped it led to the establishment of a national task force to assess abortion services around the country.
"To look at how we can improve, how we can learn from some good examples, and how we can actually make abortion more accessible across Australia," she said.
Ms Kelleher said a lack of transparency — in addition to cost, distance and social stigma — prevented many women from accessing the reproductive health care service.
"Every hospital system has implemented different pathways to accessing abortion," she said.
"Just knowing where to get compassionate care makes it really difficult to navigate what can already be a distressing time for people."
