Women’s Health Care, Prevention in Practice, and Common Medical Illnesses

Document Type

Editorial

Publication Date

3-1-2025

Identifier/URL

42902782 (Pure); 40578918 (PubMed); d34c90ff-1a54-34bc-9bdd-ce6665f6a772 (Mendeley); PMC12616822 (PubMedCentral)

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Abstract

This issue is informative on common family medicine concerns. There are several articles on women’s health issues (family physicians providing obstetric care, COVID-19 and cervical cancer screening, the availability of in vitro fertilization, and digital preconception risk counseling). Other specific prevention topics include digital push notifications to patients, the relationship of primary care utilization and emergency department use, the Medicare Annual Wellness Visit, and shared decision making for prostate cancer screening. Two articles discuss pain management. State changes in physician licensure requirements are receiving increased interest, with potential long-term impact. Medication side effects are tied to adherence – what should we do? Patient-Activated Reliever-Triggered Inhaled Corticosteroid (PARTICS) is helpful. A report by Rodney et al1 is quite impressive and can hopefully serve as an example to be replicated. The provision of comprehensive obstetrics (including c-sections) by a group of family physicians for a large number of patients that are otherwise underserved is to be celebrated. Their report, highlighting data from over 13,000 family medicine deliveries from over eighteen years, clearly identifies that this form of care is possible, high quality, impactful, and sustainable. The study by Atac and colleagues2 about the impact of the COVID epidemic on completion of cervical cancer screening included over 2 million women aged 21 to 65 years who had visited a clinician (n = 1,052) from any of 472 primary care practices in the PRIME registry. Some decrease in cervical cancer screening was probably expected, yet the disparities in screening differ from those found in prior studies and may surprise readers. Unfortunately, the decrease lasted longer than might have been expected, thus raising the question of how to ensure timely catch-up testing. In vitro fertilization (IV.F) has been around for over 40 years, but has likely also been a source of controversy for as many years. Should availability of this care be a right for women and their families? Bohler et al3 review some of the history, current controversies, and note recent proposals including the availability of IV.F for veterans. Taking advantage of technology, Dunlop et al4 added a new twist to preconception care for women with online digital risk assessment and virtual counseling. During an in-person visit, appropriate age women were invited to participate. The participating women reported increased knowledge and confidence, and the virtual assessment prompted conversations with their clinician.

DOI

10.3122/jabfm.2025.250037R0

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