The Eastern Highlands Provincial hospital is the referral
hospital for the Eastern Highlands Province, which
has an estimated population of 540,000. Two recent
studies have been undertaken at the hospital: one identified
that 60% of the 29 maternal deaths that occurred
over a 40 month retrospective period were attributable
to complications of unsafe abortion [26]; the second
identified that the majority of women presenting for post
abortion care had used misoprostol to end unwanted
pregnancies [29].