ISSN 0300-9092 (Print)
ISSN 2412-5679 (Online)

Characteristics of medical, social and psychological assistance to pregnant women in a situation of reproductive choice

Malyshkina A.I., Pesikin O.N., Kuligina M.V.

V.N. Gorodkov Ivanovo Research Institute of Maternity and Childhood, Ministry of Health of Russia, Ivanovo, Russia

Objective: To evaluate the organization, content and effectiveness of medical, social and psychological assistance to pregnant women in a situation of reproductive choice.
Materials and methods: An anonymous survey was conducted among 235 residents of the Central Federal District who presented an obstetrician-gynecologist for the termination of an unplanned pregnancy. The statistical analysis was performed using the Excel program. The statistical analysis of qualitative data is presented using absolute values and percentages, with the age of the participants expressed in the format Me (Q1; Q3).
Results: The organization and content of medical, social and psychological assistance to pregnant women in a situation of reproductive choice meets regulatory requirements. The patients have different attitudes towards pre-abortion counseling. Most often, they positively perceive the possibility of fetal ultrasound examination (68.1%) and psychological counseling (65.1%). In 90.7% of cases, psychological assistance is provided at a local women’s clinic, and in the majority of cases (98.0%) it is positively assessed by patients. The need for social, legal, and psychotherapeutic assistance for women with unplanned pregnancies is low: 11.5%, 5.9%, and 2.6%, respectively. The effectiveness of pre-abortion counseling is confirmed by the fact that 29.4% of women refused to have their pregnancy terminated.
Conclusion: Providing medical, social and psychological assistance to women in situations of reproductive choice is an effective way to reduce the number of induced abortions.

Authors’ contributions: Malyshkina A.I., Pesikin O.N., Kuligina M.V. – developing the concept and design of the study; Pesikin O.N. – collecting and processing the material; Kuligina M.V. – statistical data processing; Malyshkina A.I., Kuligina M.V. – writing the text, editing the article.
Conflicts of interest: Authors declare lack of the possible conflicts of interest.
Funding: The study was conducted without sponsorship.
Authors' Data Sharing Statement: The data supporting the findings of this study are available on request from the corresponding author after approval from the principal investigator.
For citation: Malyshkina A.I., Pesikin O.N., Kuligina M.V. Characteristics of medical, social and 
psychological assistance to pregnant women in a situation of reproductive choice.
Akusherstvo i Ginekologiya/Obstetrics and Gynecology. 2025; (12): 134-138 (in Russian)
https://dx.doi.org/10.18565/aig.2025.323

Keywords

unplanned pregnancy
medical
social and psychological assistance

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Received 10.11.2025

Accepted 28.11.2025

About the Authors

Anna I. Malyshkina, Dr. Med. Sci., Professor, Director, V.N. Gorodkov Ivanovo Research Institute of Maternity and Childhood, Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 20 Pobedy str., 153045, Ivanovo, Russia, +7(4932)33-62-63, ivniimid@inbox.ru, https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1145-0563
Oleg N. Pesikin, PhD, Deputy Director for Medical Work, V.N. Gorodkov Ivanovo Research Institute of Maternity and Childhood, Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 20 Pobedy str., 153045, Ivanovo, Russia, +7(4932)33-70-13, ivniimid@inbox.ru, https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3666-5309
Marina V. Kuligina, Dr. Med. Sci., Leading Researcher, V.N. Gorodkov Ivanovo Research Institute of Maternity and Childhood, Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation,
20 Pobedy str., 153045, Ivanovo, Russia, +7(4932)33-62-58, kuliginamv@mail.ru, https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0362-5458
Corresponding author: Marina V. Kuligina, kuliginamv@mail.ru