Why is specialist nursing care pivotal in managing under-age pregnancy?
An unplanned pregnancy We were informed of the admission of a young girl, Adele*, aged about 12, who was referred via her local hospital with an unplanned, mid-trimester pregnancy. She had recently moved to the UK and was being cared for by a female guardian. Adele’s father lived abroad and her mother’s whereabouts were unknown. Adele was said to have conceived following alleged ‘consensual’ sex with a juvenile. However, under the Sexual Offences Act (2003) all sexual activity with children under the age of 13 is illegal, as consent cannot be legally obtained (Home Office, 2004). In 13-16-year-olds the law focuses mainly on sexual activity with people aged 18 and over. In this case the likelihood of prosecution was small as the boy was also underage. Accompanied by her guardian, Adele presented to her local A&E with abdominal pains a few weeks before admission into our unit. Clinical examination and investigations confirmed that she was pregnant. Adele’s guardian had concealed the preg
