The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

Abstract #48668

Joan Fleischman, MD¹, Ian Bennett, MD², and Sally Girvin, RNC, NP¹. (1) xxx, xxx, xxx, NY, xxx, apha@confex.com, (2) xxx, xxx, xxx, xxx, PA

Early Options is a training center in early abortion located in a community-based Family Health Center. It addresses the need for women to have abortion care continuous with their overall health concerns, for doctors to have abortion care included in their routine residency training, and for the most advanced medical technology in early abortion care to be made accessible to women.

Early Options is the first Family Medicine center in the United States that offers training in all of the skills needed to provide early abortion, including “hands-on” training in medical abortions, Manual Vacuum Aspiration, and early gestational ultrasound. Early Options also demonstrates a working model of how trainees will provide abortions in their own practices.

Early Options is the home of the Residency Training Initiative.” Six Family Medicine programs in the Northeast Region are the initial participants in this training the trainers’ project. Faculty members are trained at Early Options and then initiate abortion services in their programs. Each year these six programs will train approximately 60 resident doctors. The Initiative is setting an example of the inclusion of abortion in the standard Family Medicine curriculum.

This presentation reports on the results of the first year of the Residency Training Initiative for Family Medicine providers at Early Options.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the presentation, the participant in this session will be able to

• Discuss the value in training primary care physicians to provide early abortion.
• Describe the Early Options Residency Training Initiative.
• Recognize several opportunities and challenges faced by family medicine residency programs in incorporating early abortion into their curricula.

Keywords: Abortion, Primary Care

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: Early Options Residency Training Initiative
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: Director of Early Options