Listen to the Call:
Transcript:
PLANNED PARENTHOOD
437 E. STATE ST.
TRENTON, NJ 8608-1597
609-599-4881
TAPE – 083
(Dialing, phone ringing)
RECORDING: Good morning. You have reached Planned Parenthood in Trenton. To continue in English, please press 1.
Thank you for calling Planned Parenthood. If you know your party’s extension, you may dial it at any time. If you do not know your party’s extension, please dial 411. Please listen to the next series of choices and make a selection.
For pregnancy test hours and instructions, press 1. For birth control supply hours, press 2. For information about emergency contraception, press 3. To make a clinic appointment or ask about our walk-in hours, press 4. To speak with someone in administration, public affairs or the finance department, press 5. To speak with someone in fundraising, press 6. To speak with someone about community education —
Please hold. I’m transferring you know.
CLINIC: Good morning, Planned Parenthood.
CALLER: Hi. I was wondering. Do you guys do abortions there?
CLINIC: Yes, we do. You have to have had a positive pregnancy test. You have to be between 7 and 12 weeks pregnant. It’s anywhere from 350 to $450. And we only put people under our local anesthesia, which means that you are awake during the procedure. There’s two appointments. First is your health history appointment over the phone, and that person will schedule you for the appointment for the abortion.
CALLER: Okay. Do you know if they have to tell my parents or anything?
CLINIC: No.
CALLER: No? It’s just I can’t tell my parents because my boyfriend’s 22. And we’re planning on getting married, but my parents don’t like him because they think he’s too old for me.
CLINIC: Fine. Everything here is confidential.
CALLER: You don’t think he’s too old for me or anything?
CLINIC: That’s not my place to say anything.
CALLER: Oh, all right.
CLINIC: But as far as patients having abortions here, we’re not permitted to give out any information to anybody.
CALLER: Do know if there’s like an age limit for having an abortion?
CLINIC: No. How old are you?
CALLER: I’ll be 14 in March.
CLINIC: All right. Well, you’re too young for here. Because as far as we consider, patients that are 14 or younger, we send them to a place to be put to sleep because it’s a local anesthesia. And we don’t think that’s a good idea for patients that young.
CALLER: Other people won’t tell?
CLINIC: No one should tell. I can give you a phone number for Princeton Women’s Center. That’s on Route 1 in Princeton. And they put patients to sleep. Do you want that phone number?
CALLER: Yeah.
CLINIC: Okay. Hold on, please.
(Pause)
CLINIC: That phone number is 609-514-9191.
CALLER: All right. If it turns out that I’m not pregnant, is it okay if I come to you guys for birth control or anything?
CLINIC: Sure.
CALLER: Yeah? And you still wouldn’t have to tell anybody about that?
CLINIC: No. We’re not permitted to.
CALLER: Is it cool if I talk to you later?
CLINIC: If you want to talk to someone about — what do you want to talk to us about, your different options and things like that?
CALLER: Well, if my boyfriend has questions, is it okay if I talk to you later?
CLINIC: Well, we have a community services department. And we have counselors there, and they can talk to you.
CALLER: But I like you. You’re nice.
CLINIC: They’re much nicer than me.
CALLER: But you’re nice.
CLINIC: I know. But that’s what they’re here for. Okay? They’re here to talk to you about sexuality and preventive measures.
CALLER: But I really don’t want to talk to a whole bunch of people.
CLINIC: They’ll just give you one person to talk to. They’re educators, and that’s why they’re here. So if you wanted to talk to someone, you should — if you want to call back, you should call community services. Call the same number you called and ask for community services. And I think you should ask for Violet Sawyer.
CALLER: Violet?
CLINIC: Yes. She runs that department. And she’d be able to give you either someone in that department or she would talk to you.
CALLER: Okay. Could you switch me to her right now?
CLINIC: I’ll see if she’s available. I’m not sure she’s in today. Hold on, please. Let me check.
CALLER: Okay.
(Pause)
CLINIC: Okay, I’m sorry. I didn’t get your name.
CALLER: I’m Christine.
CLINIC: Christine, I’m going to give you to Michele. And she’s in community services. And I gave her a little bit of information that you gave me, and she’ll be able to talk to you. So hang on.
CALLER: All right. Thanks.
(Pause)
CLINIC: Hi, Christine.
CALLER: Hi.
CLINIC: My name is Michele Giagano (ph) and I’m one of the pregnancy option counselors here.
CALLER: Okay.
CLINIC: You were speaking to a woman named Sharon. She gave me a little bit of background information, that you were currently pregnant, and you were having difficulties coming to a choice.
CALLER: Yeah. Me and my boyfriend talked about it, and we’re wanting to get an abortion.
CLINIC: Okay. So you had made your choice.
CALLER: Yeah.
CLINIC: So what was the reasoning behind the call?
CALLER: My friend told me that you guys have to tell about me and my boyfriend, and my parents have to find out and everything. And they can’t find out.
CLINIC: How old are you?
CALLER: I’ll be 14 in March.
CLINIC: Okay. We don’t notify the parents.
CALLER: She said that you guys would have to find out that he’s 22 —
CLINIC: No.
CALLER: — and they would have to tell my parents.
CLINIC: No. That’s not true.
CALLER: Okay. They wouldn’t have to tell anybody at all?
CLINIC: No. As long as you had the financial ability to provide yourself —
CALLER: Yeah, he said he would pay cash for it.
CLINIC: They’re not going to notify your parents. That’s a Planned Parenthood thing. We don’t need parental consent, and we don’t notify anybody. We just communicate with the person who’s getting the services.
So if you wanted to call and schedule that, you can call on Friday between 9 and 12.
CALLER: Is it cool if I call you back?
CLINIC: Yeah. I mean, it’s not me. The person that you’d be calling to schedule the termination, her name is Julie. So you can call then and tell her that you want to schedule the termination of the pregnancy. And then she’ll ask you some questions, a little bit of a pre-screening they do. It’s just kind of to know about you and whether or not you would be a fit for here. And if not, they will refer you somewhere else.
CALLER: Okay.
CLINIC: Okay? You have our number, right?
CALLER: Yeah.
CLINIC: Okay, great. Thanks.
CALLER: Thanks.
CLINIC: Bye.
***END***