Board of Health,

As a Nurse Practitioner I would hope that the Virginia Board of Health would maintain the thought that the procedures done in a Womens health clinic performing abortions should have the same standards as an outpatient surgical center or a doctors office where outpatient surgical procedures are performed. Those who make the decision to have an abortion should be able to have it done in an environment that meets basic health and safety standards, is clean, and where the staff is trained. These health and safety standards simply ensure that abortion centers meet common sense standards of care to ensure womens health is paramount.In just two years, inspections have exposed widespread health and safety violations including blood splattered exam tables and equipment, unsterilized needles, incomplete lifesaving equipment, violations of Virginia parental consent laws, an absence of reporting of possible cases of child abuse, and many more deficiencies. The abortion industry claims to be safe, but 300 health and safety violations prove otherwise. It is an industry whose opinion cannot be trusted on any of the standards, including those involving construction. Emergencies happen frequently at abortion centers and emergency personnel need to be able to get to patients in need and that involves having doorways and hallways wide enough to get emergency equipment to women in medical crisis.These issues are a matter of health and safety, NOT POLITICS. The board of health should consider this issue as a matter of health and safety and keep politics and money out of the picture. As a health care provider, it is a concern of mine to ensure that the standards that apply in the medical environment are for the safety and health of the patients who enter the door of the clinic, doctors offices, outpatient centers and hospitals. Please vote in favor of upholding the standards for the safety of the women who enter. Darlene W. Olive, FNP-BC, MPH