Extensive details on abortions carried out in hospitals across the country, including post-operative complications, will be made available by the HSE for the first time. However, the big majority of terminations are facilitated by GPs via the abortion pill.

The move comes as there are growing concerns about the risk to women’s health for those undergoing the procedure in Ireland.

The HSE confirmed the scale of the expanded detail in a parliamentary response to Independent Ireland TD Michael Collins.

Up to now, the brief annual report has been limited to statistics and to what section of the law abortions fell under.

The wider detail will initially be focused on hospital-based procedures and will include patient demographics including age, previous pregnancies, contraception use and previous terminations.

It will detail the mode involved such as through drug-induced, surgical or surgical under general anaesthetic.

It will also include the gestation at the time of the procedure and any post-termination complications and the care provided.

These will include suspected or confirmed infection, suspected incomplete termination, heavy or prolonged bleeding and presentations to hospital following early medical abortion in the community or following a termination carried out abroad.