225407 All for one and one for all: Colorado's process for developing and implementing a preconception care guideline to promote consistent and socially just health care for all women

Tuesday, November 9, 2010 : 12:40 PM - 12:55 PM

Thea Carruth, MPH , Colorado Clinical Guidelines Collaborative, Lakewood, CO
Linda Archer, RN, MSN, CNS , Women's Health Section, Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Denver, CO
Anna Kelly, MD , Healthy Women/Healthy Babies Roundtable, Centennial, CO
Sara Schwankl , Colorado Clinical Guidelines Collaborative, Lakewood, CO
Background: The Colorado Clinical Guidelines Collaborative (CCGC), Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, and the Healthy Women Healthy Babies Roundtable formed a public/private partnership to develop an evidenced-based preconception care clinical practice guideline. Numerous individual preconception interventions are known to improve pregnancy outcomes. This guideline strives to summarize and prioritize interventions in a manner that can serve as a foundation for provider and consumer-focused preconception projects in Colorado. Since all women of reproductive age benefit from the preventive care outlined in the guideline, development and dissemination of the guideline promotes consistent and socially just health care for all women—regardless of the reimbursement/payment source.

Methods: We will describe our guideline development experience including the following steps: committee selection, identifying evidence, distilling issues, focus group input, approval processes and dissemination. CCGC anticipates providing one-hour onsite trainings in low-income family planning settings to engage the entire clinical practice team in brainstorming practice redesign, work responsibilities and flow, use of electronic and paper tracking, and identification of training needs. Follow up by telephone to assess implementation and offer assistance.

Results: In 2009 CCGC developed a one-page preconception care guideline to support evidenced-based practice state-wide. We anticipate reporting on factors associated with implementation including an overall commitment to prevention and preconception care, standardization of intake forms, staff responsibilities and practice flow. We will discuss challenges including: reaching consensus among providers about preconception care, options for referral and additional training to assist with conversations on topics such as abuse, obesity, and sexual behavior.

Learning Areas:
Clinical medicine applied in public health
Public health or related organizational policy, standards, or other guidelines

Learning Objectives:
1. Identify 5 of 13 steps in developing a collaborative, evidence-based clinical practice guideline 2. List 3 tools that support a core guideline 3. Name 3 components of transformational change that lead to guideline implementation in clinical practice

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am qualified to present because I have a degree in public health, have experience working in both public health and private practice and I facilitate meetings between health care stake holders.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.