Embedding a culture of research in independent sector abortion services: opportunities and challenges

Healthcare organisations that centre evidence in their improvement strategies and work to embed a culture of research have been shown to have better patient outcomes,1 2 improved job satisfaction and retention,3 4 and greater opportunities to innovate and enact sector-wide change.5 In England and Wales, 80% of abortions are provided by independent, often charitable sector, organisations under contracts commissioned by the National Health Service (NHS).6 These contracts focus on low-cost, high-volume clinical delivery, with independent sector providers (ISPs) expected to innovate primarily through audits.7 Though ISPs are well-positioned to conduct impactful research, research is neither formally funded through service contracts nor systematically integrated across the sector. The British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) is the largest independent abortion provider in the UK. Despite the lack of dedicated research funding within NHS service contracts, BPAS has a longstanding…

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