A Message from Beverly Winikoff 

Public controversy can be an excellent opportunity for public education. In all the passion and occasional mudslinging surrounding discussion of abortion in this country, facts are sometimes the earliest victims. It is useful to remind ourselves both of the need for accurate information and of the value in explaining the issues surrounding abortion technology in a clear and explicit way.

The collection of papers in this issue of American Sexuality magazine touches on just such areas, often neglected but central to understanding the dialogue about abortion.

We do require more attention to the burdens and problems of individual practitioners trying to provide primary care abortion services in the current environment in the U.S. We need awareness of the public face of abortion issues as presented subliminally by the media. We are helped when we understand the real possibilities for demedicalization of technology and the role of experts in advocating for such change. We could do with more reminders about the context of our abortion discussions in the larger framework of rights and choice. And we need to clarify, for both the public and for many professionals, the differences among the many reproductive health technologies that are now available.

Misinformation and lack of information underlie much of the distortion of public debate on issues of reproductive health and choice. We should celebrate attempts to address gaps in understanding and contributions of substance to the public discourse. This feature series of American Sexuality magazine will help many to understand better the complex issues surrounding discussion of abortion and abortion services in our country today.

* Beverly Winikoff, MD, MPH, is President of Gynuity Health Projects, a research and technical assistance organization established in 2002 that works to make reproductive health technology widely available. Previously, Dr. Winikoff was employed for 25 years at the Population Council where she was Director of the Reproductive Health program. In this role, she was a key member of the team responsible for mifepristone in the U.S. and was the principal investigator of the acceptability portion of the US pivotal trials on this drug. Her work has focused on issues of reproductive choice, contraception, abortion and women?s health. She is particularly interested in issues surrounding the abuse, misuse and non-use of medical technology as these phenomena impact on women?s health and autonomy.

Dr. Winikoff graduated from Harvard University magna cum laude and earned her MD degree from New York University and her MPH degree from the Harvard School of Public Health.