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Welcome to the Right Decision Service (RDS) newsletter for August 2024.

  1. Contingency planning for RDS outages

Following the recent RDS outages, Tactuum and the RDS team have been reviewing the learning from these incidents. We are committed to doing all we can to ensure a positive outcome by strengthening the RDS to make it fully robust and clinically resilient for the future.

We would like to invite you to a webinar on 26th September 3-4 pm on national and local contingency planning for future RDS outages.  Tactuum and the RDS team will speak about our business continuity plans and the national contingency arrangements we are putting in place. This will also be a space to share local contingency plans, ideas and existing good practice. We would also like to gather your views on who we should send communications to in the event of future outages.

I have sent a meeting request for this date to all editors – please accept or decline to indicate attendance, and please forward on to relevant contacts. You can also contact Olivia.graham@nhs.scot directly to register your interest in participating.

 

2.National  IV fluid prescribing  calculator

This UK CA marked calculator is now live at https://righdecisions.scot.nhs.uk/ivfluids  . It has been developed by a multiprofessional steering group of leads in IV fluids management, as part of the wider Modernising Patient Pathways Programme within the Centre for Sustainable Delivery.  It aims to address a known cause of clinical error in hospital settings, and we hope it will be especially useful to the new junior doctors who started in August.

Please do spread the word about this new calculator and get in touch with any questions.

 

  1. New toolkits

The following toolkits are now live;

  1. Updated guidance on current and future Medical Device Regulations

We have updated and simplified this guidance within our standard operating procedures. We have clarified the guidance on how to determine whether an RDS tool is a medical device, and have provided an interactive powerpoint slideset to steer you through the process.

 

  1. Guide to six stages of RDS toolkit development

We have developed a guide to support editors and toolkit leads through the process of scoping, designing, delivering, quality assuring and implementing a new RDS toolkit.  We hope this will help in project planning and in building shared understanding of responsibilities throughout the full development process.  The guide emphasises that the project does not end with launch of the new toolkit. Implementation, communication and evaluation are ongoing activities throughout the lifetime of the toolkit.

 

  1. Training sessions for new editors (also serve as refresher sessions for existing editors) will take place on the following dates:
  • Thursday 5 September 1-2 pm
  • Wednesday 24 September 4-5 pm
  • Friday 27 September 12-1 pm

To book a place, please contact Olivia.graham@nhs.scot, providing your name, organisation, job role, and level of experience with RDS editing (none, a little, moderate, extensive.)

7 Evaluation projects

Dr Stephen Biggart from NHS Lothian has kindly shared with us the results of a recent survey of use of the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh Anaesthesia toolkit. This shows that the majority of consultants are using it weekly or monthly, mainly to access clinical protocols, with a secondary purpose being education and training purposes. They tend to find information by navigating by specialty rather than keyword searching, and had some useful recommendations for future development, such as access to quick reference guidance.

We’d really appreciate you sharing any other local evaluations of RDS in this way – it all helps to build the evidence base for impact.

If you have any questions about the content of this newsletter, please contact his.decisionsupport@nhs.scot  If you would prefer not to receive future newsletters, please email Olivia.graham@nhs.scot and ask to be removed from the circulation list.

 

With kind regards

 

Right Decision Service team

Healthcare Improvement Scotland

Medical Termination of Pregnancy Protocol (513)

Please report any inaccuracies or issues with this guideline using our online form

< 10 + 0 WEEKS GESTATION

Mifepristone Day

  • Ensure case-notes and appropriate documentation available.
  • Check consent form is signed
  • Check certificate A has 2 signatures.
  • Ensure confirmed intra-uterine pregnancy.
  • Complete paperwork in ICP/electronic record
  • Check the patient is sure of their decision.
  • Administer mifepristone 200mg PO in accordance with drug kardex. Patient may go home thereafter.
  • Advise patient to return to the place of administration if she vomits within 1 hour.
  • Ensure advice is given to the patient regarding pain and/or bleeding she may experience over the following 24-48 hours.
  • Ensure the patient has the ward telephone number.
  • Advise the patient to bring appropriate clothing for admission.

Misoprostol Day
48 hours following mifepristone.

  • Nurse enquires about pain/bleeding/passage of products of conception.
  • Check BP, pulse and temperature.
  • Explain the procedure to the patient.
  • Patient is NOT routinely required to fast.
  • Confirm contraceptive plan, and prescribe/administer as indicated.
  • Misoprostol 800 micrograms PV.
  • Diclofenac 100mg PR as prophylactic analgesia unless contraindicated. (If contra-indicated cocodamol 30/500 PO).
  • Patient to use bed pan throughout procedure to aid identification of POC.
  • If products ARE passed, follow the discharge procedure.

If no POC passed within 6 hours:

  • If POC are not passed within 4 hours administer 400 micrograms of misoprostol sublingually.
  • If no POC passed within one hour, perform speculum examination to ensure POC are not in cervix/vagina.

If POC are not identified following a second dose of misoprostol or during vaginal examination:

  • If pain and bleeding are satisfactory, the patient should be discharged home. The patient should be offered either follow-up scan by appointment at Sandyford after 7-14 days or a pregnancy test after 21 days. If the patient chooses the latter option, the pregnancy test kit should be supplied to the patient on discharge. If she chooses the scan option, then Sandyford contact details should be given so that she can make an appointment.
  • For patients who are <10 + 0 weeks gestation and pass what is thought to be incomplete POC – follow up is scan is NOT required. Advise the patient that bleeding is to be expected, however ensure ward contact details are given so that the patient can contact staff should they be concerned that their bleeding is heavier than anticipated.  

If excessive bleeding occurs before/after POC passed:

  • Perform speculum examination to evacuate clot and remove any POC identified.
  • If bleeding continues contact middle grade or consultant gynaecologist.
  • Fast patient.
  • Site venflon.
  • Check P/BP/T/O2 saturation every 15 minutes/high-flow facial O2 if bleeding continues.
  • Send FBC.
  • Cross-match and check clotting screen if signs of shock.
  • Give misoprostol 400 micrograms sublingually.
  • Give ergometrine 500 micrograms IM unless contra-indicated for the patient. This can be given at the same time as misoprostol, as it will be effective before the misoprostol has its maximum effect.
  • If bleeding persists or there are clinical signs of shock (tachycardia, hypotension), an urgent surgical evacuation should be arranged by medical staff.

DISCHARGE PROCEDURE FOR ALL PATIENTS

  • Record the patient’s BP, pulse and temperature prior to discharge.
  • Contraception must be supplied or a contraceptive plan agreed.
  • Anti-D is NOT required for rhesus negative women.
  • All patients with a multiple pregnancy require a follow-up scan at Sandyford

Scan Post TOP

If scan shows RPOC < 3cm – advise patient to seek referral if increased PV bleeding, pain or offensive PV loss.

If scan shows RPOC > 3cm the patient should be offered surgical evacuation of uterus if clinically indicated i.e. excessive bleeding.

If the patient declines surgical evacuation she may be managed conservatively with anti-biotics (co-amoxiclav 375mg TID for 7 days). A further scan will be required after 7-10 days to ensure RPOC is decreasing in size.

If scan shows a continuing pregnancy the patient should be given the option of MTOP or STOP depending on their gestation.

Protocol for MTOP 10-18 weeks gestation

Mifepristone Day

  • Ensure case-notes and appropriate documentation available.
  • Check consent form is signed
  • Check certificate A has 2 signatures.
  • Ensure confirmed intra-uterine pregnancy.
  • Complete paperwork in the ICP/electronic record.
  • Check the patient is sure of their decision.
  • Administer mifepristone 200mg PO in accordance with drug kardex. Patient may go home thereafter.
  • Advise patient to return to the place of administration if they vomit within 1 hour.
  • Ensure advice is given to the patient regarding pain and/or bleeding they may experience over the following 24-48 hours.
  • Ensure the patient has the ward telephone number.
  • Advise the patient to bring appropriate clothing for admission.

Misoprostol Day
48 hours following mifepristone.

  • Nurse enquires about pain/bleeding/passage of products of conception.
  • Check BP, pulse and temperature.
  • Explain the procedure to the patient.
  • Patient is NOT routinely required to fast.
  • Confirm contraceptive plan, and prescribe/administer as indicated.
  • Administer Misoprostol 800 micrograms PV.
  • Diclofenac 100mg PR as prophylactic analgesia unless contraindicated. (If contra-indicated cocodamol 30/500 PO).
  • After 3 hours administer 400 micrograms of misoprostol sublingually and repeat at 3 hourly intervals until abortion occurs.
  • Analgesia and anti-emetics should be administered as required.
  • Patient to use bedpan throughout procedure to aid identification of POC.
  • Following the delivery of foetus either with or without the placenta, syntometrine (ergometrine 500 micrograms with oxytocin 5 units) 1ml IM should be administered.
  • If the placenta is not passed within the hour of syntometrine being administered, the patient should be examined vaginally and placenta retrieved if possible.
  • If the placenta is not retrieved, site venflon, fast patient, and arrange theatre. Check FBC/coagulation screen if heavy bleeding.
  • Whilst awaiting theatre, administer misoprostol 400 micrograms sublingually. This should be repeated after a further 3 hours if still awaiting theatre.
  • Heavy PV bleeding following passage of placenta requires medical review to assess need for surgical evacuation of uterus. See “management of excessive bleeding” in <10 + 0 week section of guideline above.

Failure to Abort After 24 hours of Misoprostol 10 - 13 + 0 weeks

Surgical evacuation should be offered to patient.
If surgery declined/contraindicated follow guidance below.

Failure to Abort After 24 hours of Misoprostol > 13 + 0 weeks

  • Continue to give misoprostol 400 micrograms sublingually
  • 4 hourly BP/P/T. Commence NEWS chart.
  • PV assessment should be carried out by experienced medical staff 24 hours from commencing misoprostol.
  • If abortion has not occurred after 48 hours of misoprostol, further management must be discussed with a consultant gynaecologist.
  • Management will depend on the condition of the individual patient, pyrexia and gestation.
  • Ultrasound scan should be performed to exclude abdominal pregnancy/uterine rupture.
  • Consider day 3 of misoprostol if membranes intact.

DISCHARGE PROCEDURE FOR ALL PATIENTS

  • Record the patient’s BP, pulse and temperature prior to discharge.
  • Contraception must be supplied or a contraceptive plan agreed.
  • Anti-D prophylaxis MUST be given to ALL rhesus negative women over 10 weeks.
  • All patients with a multiple pregnancy require a follow-up scan at Sandyford

Editorial Information

Last reviewed: 01/12/2020

Next review date: 31/12/2025

Author(s): Nikki Harvey.

Version: 4 (Revised December 2020)

Approved By: Gynaecology Clinical Governance Group

Document Id: 513