Doctor to pay for child upkeep after failed abortion

A Spanish doctor has been ordered to pay for the upkeep of a child after a failed abortion operation meant the boy's mother was obliged to see her pregnancy through to the end.In a unique case, a court in Palma de Mallorca ordered the unnamed doctor to pay almost €1,000 (£800) a month in maintenance for the child until he reaches his 25th birthday.

The boy was born in October 2010, six months after his mother had gone for an abortion at the city's Emece clinic. The operation had been performed when the mother was almost seven weeks pregnant. The doctor told her two weeks later that a scan that  'You are fine, off you go and carry on with your life as normal.' " She did not return to the clinic for three months, and only after becoming convinced she must have become pregnant by mistake once more.A fresh scan revealed, however, that this was the same pregnancy. She was already into her sixth month and past the 22-week limit for abortions in Spain.


The woman, who had hidden her pregnancy from her family out of fear at their reaction, was forced to confront her parents with the news. She and the child now live with them. Despite the fact that a suction technique had been used to try to remove the embryo, the boy was born healthy.
The mother sued the doctor for damages, with the court awarding her €150,000 (£120,000). It also decided the doctor and his insurer should pay maintenance of €978 a month for 25 years, or a further €293,000.
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"I am OK now, because I have had to accept things. There is no other option. I'm happy with my son," she said. "When I have to explain all this to him, I'll try to make sure that he feels OK about it. It was back then that he was not wanted, not now."
Munar said: "Obviously this has changed her life. This is not what she was planning and she certainly didn't expect it to happen after visiting the clinic.