Contraceptive Pearl: The Myth of the Required Pelvic Exam

Many clinicians require patients to have a recent pelvic exam and pap smear before starting or renewing hormonal birth control. Do women really need a pelvic exam before starting hormonal contraception?

Contraceptive Pearl: Nexplanon – The New Single Rod Progestin Implant

Do some of your patients wrinkle their noses at the idea of an intrauterine device (IUD)? Don’t forget to suggest the progestin implant! Learn about the single rod progestin implant in this Contraceptive Pearl.

Contraceptive Pearl: Non-Prescription Birth Control Methods

Cost is one of the biggest barriers to effective contraception. About 18% of American women are uninsured, and many more are under-insured. This Contraceptive Pearl explores low-cost, non-hormonal methods of contraception.

Contraceptive Pearl: Do You Quick Start?

When a patient wants to start hormonal contraception, many clinicians use the Sunday start method – but Sunday start isn’t the only way. Quickstart means initiating contraception on the day of an office visit, at any point in the patient’s menstrual cycle. Learn about Quickstart in this Contraceptive Pearl.

Contraceptive Pearl: Do You Under Use IUDs?

In most developed countries, 10-25% of women of reproductive age use intrauterine devices (IUDs) – yet in the United States, only 2% of reproductive-age women use IUDs. This Contraceptive Pearl explores the benefits of IUDs.

Expanding Access to the Self-Administered Contraceptive Injection

Depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA), often referred to by the brand name, Depo Provera, or “the depo shot,” is birth control that is administered as an injection every three months to prevent pregnancy. The most common form is an intramuscular injection, which usually involves going to a health care provider — like a doctor, nurse, or…

Hormonal Contraception, Breast Cancer, and Communicating Risk to Patients

This Contraceptive Pearl clarifies how to communicate risk to address questions regarding cancer risk for users of hormonal contraception.

Insights: Ensuring Effective Communication for Disabled Patients

Written by Jillian MacLeod Effective communication is essential for building trust with patients, supporting decision-making capacity, and providing quality medical care–including abortion care. For patients with disabilities that affect communication, it can be the difference between access to quality abortion care and complete denial of care. People with communication disabilities are much more likely to…

Reproductive Health Care and Advocacy Fellowship

The Reproductive Health Care and Advocacy Fellowship is a year-long intensive clinical training program that develops a diverse community of family medicine leaders to provide, teach, and advocate for access to equitable and person-centered reproductive health care, especially within primary care. We envision a vibrant and diverse community of clinical leaders and change-makers with the…

Insights: RHAP Clinical Update: Management of Pregnancy of Unknown Location

Written by Tulsi Patel, MD There is a consensus among the Society of Family Planning (SFP), National Abortion Federation (NAF), and Planned Parenthood that immediate treatment of pregnancy of unknown location (PUL) decreases the time to diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy and allows for earlier pregnancy resolution.1-2 Immediate treatment (or active management) refers to pursuing medication…