Seven years after abortion was decriminalised in Victoria, doctors say about one-third of pregnant women are being cared for in Catholic hospitals in Victoria that will not perform terminations, and that there is no co-ordinated system to ensure equitable access to abortion across the state.

Doctors who did not want to be named said even some public hospitals that are not Catholic remained "squeamish" about the medical procedure, with health professionals viewing it as "dirty work" that they would prefer to send elsewhere.

Research conducted by The Murdoch Childrens Research Institute has found that women whose fetuses are diagnosed with abnormalities can wait up to two weeks to be booked in for a termination in public hospitals, exacerbating their distress.

Interviews conducted with 102 men and women since 2012 also found that some did not receive adequate assistance from health professionals to arrange a termination, forcing them to resort to Google or the Yellow Pages to find a private abortion service that can cost thousands of dollars.

In some cases, their request for an abortion in a public hospital was referred to a "termination review panel" that assesses who should receive an abortion at varying gestations. This process occurs despite Victorian law allowing abortion to occur up to 24 weeks' for any reason. After 24 weeks, it requires two doctors to agree.

The research participants included people whose fetuses had been diagnosed with Down syndrome as well as life threatening problems, such as a trisomy 18 or 13 disorder where the baby is unlikely to survive if the pregnancy continued.

Dr Jan Hodgson, who co-ordinates the PeTALS (Prenatal Testing, A Longitudinal Study) research project, said while some participants reported feeling well cared for after diagnosis of an abnormality, a large number did not.

"Many felt inadequately supported by their doctors if they decided to have a termination, often perceiving this as being negatively judged for choosing to end their pregnancy."

Given there are clear pathways of care following other screening tests such as mammograms, Dr Hodgson said stigma around disability and abortion were likely getting in the way of caring for couples after prenatal diagnosis.

She said as more accurate and non-invasive screening tests become available to pregnant women, it is unethical to promote their use if health professionals do not provide non-judgmental and supportive care, including access to timely abortion for those who decide to terminate their pregnancy.

Family Planning Victoria CEO Lynne Jordan said some women requesting abortions for reasons other than fetal abnormalities had also reported being told by their GPs that they could not provide access to the service. This is despite the law saying that doctors with a conscientious objection must refer patients to a doctor who does not object.

Ms Jordan said regardless of the reasons for a woman seeking a termination, there should be better access to abortion in Victoria with more transparent information about where it is carried out.

"Good health care should provide all of the options available," she said. "That is quality of care."

At the moment, the department of health only publishes a list of two public hospitals that offer abortion, even though other hospitals do it from time to time. On the government's Better Health Channel website, it says the Royal Women's Hospital offers abortion up to 18 weeks' with "limited appointments available" and Monash up to 12 weeks.

Associate Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of Melbourne, Lachlan de Crespigny, said it was disgraceful that women were still facing barriers to abortion in Victoria, including "termination review panels" for procedures after 24 weeks' gestation.

He said the panels – set up after he and four other doctors terminated a 32-week fetus with dwarfism because the mother was suicidal in 2000 – lacked transparency.

"It is about who should decide how other women should live their lives. Some people seem to think it's OK that an anonymous person without giving reasons has a right to indicate how a woman they have never met should live their life," he said.

Associate Professor de Crespigny said women should ask health professionals and hospitals about their views on abortion before they sign up for care with them in case they want the option down the track.

"It should be high up on people's minds," he said.

Executive Director of Women's Health Victoria, Rita Butera​, said more should be done to ensure public and private health services provide women with consistent professional and unbiased advice about their options.

"I think most people would think it is a right," she said. "Governments and service providers should be showing leadership."

A spokeswoman for Victorian Health Minister Jill Hennessy said if a patient feels their doctor has not acted appropriately, they can make a complaint to the Australian Health Practitioners Regulation Authority.