‘How nice would it be!’: synergies between pro-choice female physicians and abortion acompañantes in Mexico

Pro-choice female physicians and abortion acompañantes– feminist activists who provide information and accompaniment during self-managed medication abortions– each contribute to safe abortion access in Mexico. Synergistic collaboration between these actors could improve access to safe and high-quality abortion care. We explored the possibility of synergy between pro-choice female physicians and acompañantes in Mexico. This qualitative research is based on feminist epistemology. We used an established framework that describes partner synergy to analyze data from three workshops held with 12 physicians and 13 acompañantes in Chiapas (n = 12), Baja California (n = 9), and Mexico City (n = 4). The workshops sought to foster empathy and reflection on interactions, collaborations, and synergy. Workshop dynamics included sociodrama acting and group discussions. We identified a common interest in building alliances and ideas about synergistic collaborations related to abortion care and accompaniment. Additionally, participants expressed an interest in mutual care arising from the recognition of common experiences of gender-based discrimination and violence among participants, which is a clear expression of synergistic collaboration. Our results also suggest that the pro-choice physicians do not see themselves as political actors, in contrast to the acompañantes, for whom their abortion work is deeply political. We describe that combating prejudice and fostering mutual recognition is necessary for successful collaborations, while the power asymmetry between physicians and acompañantes remains the main barrier to synergy. Finally, we determined that the workshop had an awareness-raising effect that could encourage the creation of subsequent alliances. Creating spaces for meeting and exchange may foster collaborations between these actors from different worlds, which can facilitate access to safe abortions. In Mexico, both pro-choice female doctors and acompañantes—feminist activists who support people through self-managed medication abortions—play important roles in making abortion safer and more accessible. This study looked at how these two groups might work better together. Using a feminist approach, we held three workshops in Chiapas, Baja California, and Mexico City with 12 doctors and 13 acompañantes. The goal was to encourage empathy, understanding, and potential collaboration between them and discuss possible collaborations. We found that both groups were interested in working together to improve abortion care. Participants also recognized shared experiences of gender-based discrimination and violence, which helped build a sense of mutual care and understanding. However, there were also key differences. While acompañantes view their work as deeply political, many doctors did not see themselves that way. Also, power imbalances between doctors and activists remained a major challenge to true collaboration. Despite this, the workshops helped raise awareness and opened the door to future cooperation. Creating spaces for dialogue and connection between these groups may help strengthen alliances and improve access to safe, high-quality abortion care across Mexico.

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