On March 10, 1993, Dr. David Gunn was murdered by an anti-abortion extremist. Three years later, to honor his life and his work, the 10^th of March became the National Day of Appreciation for Abortion Providers. Every day, we are thankful and honored that abortion care providers all over the country put their lives at risk to provide comprehensive health care. Abortion care providers are faced with threats of violence against them and their families, aggressive legislative limitations, and emotional harassment. These are just a few of the intimidation tactics that are used to deter clinicians from providing full-spectrum patient-centered health care. We at RHAP are fortunate to work with caring, dedicated, and passionate providers located all over the country. Thank you to all the physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, midwives, staff, volunteers, doulas, and advocates who ensure access to safe, compassionate abortion care in independent clinics and in the primary care setting.

As we celebrate and share our appreciation for abortion care providers today and every day, here are some things you can do to show up for abortion access:

• Share your thanks and appreciation on social media using #CelebrateAbortionProviders
• Donate to help us continue supporting our work with clinicians like Jaquelyn, Linda, and Katrina
• Stay updated on reproductive and sexual health, rights, and justice news here

 

And if you want to hear more from the clinicians who do this work, check out our 2014 blog post, “13 Ways Providing Abortion Care Makes Me A Better Doctor”