NAF's 1998 survey of abortion training in obstetrics and gynecology residency programs in the U.S. (PDF file, 167K) suggested an increase in the availability of abortion training. However, it is clear that the number of abortion providers in North America is not only steadily declining, but an inadequate number of abortion providers remain to deliver these much-needed services.
There is no single solution to the shortage of abortion providers. Although most abortions in the U.S. are currently provided by gynecologists, a growing number of clinicians from family medicine are not only pursuing abortion training, but translating that training into direct abortion services in their professional practices. Practitioners in internal medicine, emergency medicine and adolescent and pediatric medicine also have occasion to see women with unplanned pregnancies or in need of abortion care or follow-up care.
NAF works to facilitate the availability and accessibility of abortion training for future generations of providers as part of our commitment to ensuring safe, legal, and accessible abortion care to promote health and justice for women. This section identifies programs and resources specifically designed for - or for use with - the development of new abortion training opportunities in medical schools, residency programs, teaching hospitals, freestanding clinics, and independent medical practices.
As part of the Residency Training Program, NAF convenes a Residency Training Workshop approximately every two years. The workshop itself is a single, full-day meeting of approximately 20 representatives from clinics and residency programs, representing a wide spectrum of experience with training residents in abortion. The most desirable situation is one in which a clinic representative and a residency program representative from the same area come together. This allows them during the workshop to begin developing an initial framework of ideas and strategies on-site, with the assistance of their peers.
The focus covers a variety of issues associated with creating and sustaining training programs in local clinics. Different models of training programs will be presented, and discussion will address administrative and clinical issues from the perspectives of both the residency program and the clinic. Specific topics addressed include finding and selecting trainees, licensing and malpractice insurance, identifying trainers, developing the curriculum, evaluating trainees, and cost(s) of training. The day is divided into faculty presentations of various training models, break-out groups, and round table discussions.
Request more information about NAF's next Residency Training Workshop.
Developing an abortion training program at your site does not mean that you have to reinvent the wheel. A number of resources are already developed and available for use as references, guides, or models you can adapt to fit your site or program needs. You can download or order NAF publications and resources online:
Get more information on training opportunities.
In October 2000, the National Abortion Federation (NAF), Planned Parenthood of New York City (PPNYC), the Consortium of Planned Parenthood Abortion Providers (CAPS), and The Access Project convened a national symposium to discuss best practices in abortion training and to consider strategies to ensure that the resources invested in abortion training result in actual increases in the number of qualified abortion providers.
The symposium focused on evaluating progress to date in a wide range of formal and informal training programs, and considering future directions for training. It provided the first opportunity for providers of abortion training and services to come together to develop strategies for translating abortion training into positive, personal commitments to service delivery on the part of trainees, and equipping trainees with skills for navigating and overcoming the barriers to becoming abortion providers.
We present the key findings and recommendations of the Symposium participants in this report (PDF file, 283K) as a resource for organizations and individuals engaged in the important work of abortion training and abortion service provision as we continue to collaborate and seek creative and meaningful solutions that ensure access to high-quality abortion services for women who need them.
NAF has developed a number of resources to address the many aspects of abortion training, including a clinical training curriculum and the most comprehensive and up-to-date textbook on abortion practice. For a complete listing of NAF's Clinical Training Resources, visit our Clinical and Professional Training Publications.
A number of other organizations have developed resources for abortion training, as well, and have made some of these resources available on the web. Here are several resources NAF suggests:
- Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health (ANSIRH) - You can access a free copy of ANSIRH Program's Early Abortion Training Workbook
- American Medical Women's Association - Reproductive Health Initiative - This program offers a number of reproductive health education tools, including a Reproductive Health Model Curriculum and educational tools for each content area of the curriculum
- The Access Project - This site offers a host of resources to help clinicians initiate and integrate early abortion methods into their existing scope of practice
- Association of Professors of Obstetrics and Gynecology (APGO) - APGO's Women's Healthcare Education Resource Network has developed new resources for teaching and evaluating women's health care competencies in medical education. These are particularly significant as medical education is shifting towards stronger evaluation of learning objectives and outcomes.
- ACGME Outcome Project - The ACGME Outcome Project is designed to enhance resident education through outcomes assessment. While this information is not abortion-specific, NAF encourages trainers and programs to incorporate the competency areas identified by the ACGME into the development of an abortion training program, and endeavor to create rigorous assessment and evaluation tools for their trainees.
NAF has compiled a bibliography of published and peer-reviewed articles about abortion training. While the list is not a comprehensive resource of all abortion-training related publications, it includes the most significant peer-reviewed articles that have been published to date. These articles address abortion as a component of medical education in medical school, ob-gyn residency programs, and family medicine residency programs. As new studies are completed and published, NAF continues to update this resource, so continue to check back for the most recent literature.
The Kenneth J. Ryan Residency Training Program in Abortion and Family Planning was founded in 1999 to provide technical and financial assistance to obstetrics and gynecology departments working to comply with ACGME and other abortion training mandates. The goal of the program is to increase and improve abortion and family planning training opportunities for ob-gyn residents in the United States and Canada. To ensure resident competence, they offer support in instituting a formal dedicated rotation, either by establishing an outpatient abortion service within the teaching hospital or linking with a freestanding clinic in the community.
The Ryan Program can offer:
- start-up funding for faculty and staff salaries, consultants, equipment and renovations;
- technical assistance for the development of business plans, training staff, protocols and site evaluations;
- expert speakers for Grand Rounds presentations on a range of topics related to abortion;
- hands-on training for faculty and residency in manual uterine aspiration;
- site visits with established programs; and
- identification of potential faculty from a pool of graduating family planning fellows.
For more information, or if you are interested in participating in the Ryan Residency Training Program, contact:
Uta Landy, PhD, Ryan Program Director
The Ryan Residency Training Program
University of California, San Francisco
Center for Reproductive Health Research & Policy
3333 California Street, Suite 335, Box 0744
San Francisco, CA 94143-0744
Phone: (415) 502-4091
Email: ulandy@itsa.ucsf.edu
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