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Counseling Women Who Have Terminated a Pregnancy Due to Fetal Anomaly (TOPFA): The ACCEPT Model

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Abstract

Women who have terminated a pregnancy due to fetal anomaly (TOPFA) may experience disenfranchised grief, societal stigmatization, and lack of support. A history of legislative attempts to criminalize TOPFA providers, public misunderstanding, and poor healthcare experiences may create reluctance in women to seek face-to-face counseling. While recent publications have assessed the grief reactions and help-seeking of women who TOPFA, few have provided an informed approach to therapeutic intervention for clinical social workers. This article attempts to provide a practice model through a composite case study utilizing the proposed ACCEPT model. The ACCEPT model incorporates elements of modern grief theory and consists of acknowledging disenfranchised grief, connecting emotions to the loss, continuing bonds, exploring distortions, practicing new skills, and telling the story. Implications and recommendations for social work engagement, awareness, and therapeutic support of this population are also provided.

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Notes

  1. Readers should note that Sawicka’s (2016) discussion of ambiguity is not synonymous with Boss’ (1999) categorization of ambiguous loss, in which the object of grief is physically but not psychologically present, or physically absent but with the possibility, but not certainty, of return.

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  1. Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ, USA

    Erica Danya Goldblatt Hyatt

  2. DSW Program, Rutgers University School of Social Work, 390 George Street, 6th Floor, New Brunswick, NJ, 08901, USA

    Erica Danya Goldblatt Hyatt

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Goldblatt Hyatt, E.D. Counseling Women Who Have Terminated a Pregnancy Due to Fetal Anomaly (TOPFA): The ACCEPT Model. Clin Soc Work J 49, 52–63 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10615-019-00732-0

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