If your doctor judges you to be mature enough to understand what making the decision means, you can consent to an abortion on your own - it is usually a good idea to have a parent or trusted adult involved to support you.
There is no age limit on getting an abortion. If you are under 18 you may be able to get an abortion without a parent or guardian agreeing if the doctor thinks it is your decision and that you understand what that decision means.
If you are under 16 years of age but independent of your parent(s) or responsible adult and not a child in care, then you can have a termination without notifying your parents or getting an order from the Children's Court (section 334(8)(b) Health Act 1911).
Informed consent
If you are under 18, to consent to an abortion, the doctor must think you are mature enough to understand the procedure and what is involved. You must also give consent freely and voluntarily, which means you have not been pressured into it.
You can have an abortion performed by a doctor up to the 22nd week of pregnancy and 6 days. After 23 weeks, 2 doctors must approve the abortion and only if they agree that the health or mental wellbeing of the woman is at risk, to save another fetus (multiple pregnancy) or if the fetus has a serious abnormality.
There are 2 ways to have an abortion — via surgery or by taking a pill (before you are 9 weeks pregnant). Both ways are very safe and effective in Australia.
Conscientious objection applies to registered healthcare practitioners who may be required to participate in a termination of pregnancy (ToP) procedure, for example, medical practitioners, anaesthetists, nurses, midwives, pharmacists or Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health practitioners.
Generally, a Minor is capable of independently consenting to or refusing their medical treatment when they achieve a sufficient level of understanding and intelligence to enable them to understand fully what is proposed. This means that there is no set age at which a child or young person is capable of giving consent.
In Australia, there is no minimum age which a child can legally refuse to see a parent following divorce or separation. Of course, once children of divorce reach the age of 18 years they can make their own decisions about where they live or which parent they want to spend time with.
The age at which a person becomes an 'adult' in Australia is 18 years. Consent for the medical treatment of patients less than 18 years of age is generally provided by parents. However, there are circumstances in which patients under the age of 18 can consent to their own medical treatment.
It is not illegal to become pregnant at any age, and this includes making your own decisions about the pregnancy – abortion, adoption, keeping it. Nobody has legal rights over this decision but the pregnant woman.
A woman becomes able to get pregnant when she ovulates for the first time — about 14 days before her first menstrual period. This happens to some women as early as when they are eight years old, or even earlier. Most often, ovulation begins before women turn 20.
The law in NSW
Women and pregnant people are no longer at risk of prosecution for procuring their own abortion and doctors are able to perform an abortion after gaining informed consent up to 22 weeks of pregnancy.
Abortion was legalised in New South Wales in 2019 under the Abortion Law Reform Act 2019. Abortion in New South Wales may be surgical (meaning that a surgical procedure is carried out to end a pregnancy) or medical (meaning that a drug is administered or prescribed in order to end a pregnancy).
AT 16. you can have sex with another person (including same sex) who is also 16 or older, if they agree, without breaking the law.
Why do age of consent laws exist? Age of consent laws are designed to protect children and young people from sexual exploitation and abuse from adults and older young people.
If the sex is consensual (and it must be enthusiastic consent) and the other party is also aged 16 years or over it is not against the law, although there are some exceptions: If the person is very drunk or under the influence of drugs, they may not have the capacity to consent so having sex with them is an offence.
Introduced in Queensland in 2013 and first initiated by Children`s Health Queensland, the rule allows patients, parents or carers to request an immediate clinical examination if the patient`s health deteriorates or does not improve as expected.
There is no law that says how old you must be before you can go to the doctor alone.
Generally, a child under the age of 18 years is assessed as being a 'mature minor' if they fully comprehend the nature, consequences and risks of the proposed action, irrespective of the presence or absence of parental consent.
Conscientious Objection, Ethics of
A conscientious objector feels duty bound to act according to deeply held religious or philosophical beliefs. Religious conscientious objectors, for example, might interpret the commandment “Thou shall not kill” as the divine injunction against killing any human beings.
A conscientious objector is one who is opposed to serving in the armed forces and/or bearing arms on the grounds of moral or religious principles.
A conscientious objection is when a person declines to participate in a lawful process or procedure due to their personal beliefs, values, or moral concerns. A healthcare worker has the right to refuse to participate in the process if they conscientiously object to voluntary assisted dying.