Chatham-Kent health unit refers pregnant women to a clinic with anti-abortion ties

The public health unit in Chatham-Kent, Ont., has been referring women, including those with unplanned pregnancies, to a private organization with connections to anti-abortion views, CBC News has learned.

CK Public Health has been listing Refuge as a community resource on its website for pregnant women in crisis or those seeking support. That reference was removed last week when CBC News began inquiring about the relationship. 

But prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the health unit also stationed nurses inside Refuge where they met women for breastfeeding support clinics.

Candace Johnson, a professor of political science at the University of Guelph, says people should be alarmed by this. She called it "outrageous."

Johnson researches issues related to abortion, reproductive rights and justice. She said it's unacceptable and problematic for a public health unit to refer women, in any way, to an organization known to have anti-abortion connections.

"The problem is that it seems like there's some degree of deception. It seems to be a referral to an agency that is going to provide some sort of unbiased information when that's not the case," she said. She also doubts whether an organization such as Refuge can be entirely neutral.

Carolyn Martin, a nurse at CK Public Health for the last 20 years, feels the same. That's why she's speaking out.

Martin has worked mostly with teens over her 20 years with CK Public Health, and provides support to new and expectant mothers. She said she worries most about vulnerable teens referred to Refuge who may have an unplanned pregnancy and come from a low-income family or a marginalized group, and may not have adult support at home.

"What's saddest about it is the kid who just doesn't have an adult to say 'here's all your real options,'" said Martin.

Martin said she also questions why the health unit directed women to Refuge for breastfeeding support when CK Public Health had space at its building nearby.

"It just made me mad," she said. 

CK Public Health had a four-page document online that contained community resources for women. It listed Refuge as a resource for young moms, those experiencing a crisis or unexpected pregnancy, and women in need.

However, one day after CBC News began asking questions about the relationship, CK Public Health removed that document from its website.

In recent years, a billboard referencing Refuge popped up in Chatham-Kent equating abortion to murder with the photo of a newborn baby clearly displayed. The same billboard still stands near Dresden, but it now contains a website referencing Life in Motion.