Evaluating the impact of a mandatory pre-abortion ultrasound viewing law: A mixed methods study.

Background: Since mid-2013, Wisconsin abortion providers have been legally required to display and describe pre-abortion ultrasound images. We aimed to understand the impact of this law.

Methods: We used a mixed-methods study design at an abortion facility in Wisconsin.

Can a structured, behavior-based interview predict future resident success?

Objective: To determine whether a structured, behavior-based applicant interview predicts future success in an obstetrics and gynecology residency program.

Study Design: Using a modified pre-post study design, we compared behavior-based interview scores of our residency applicants to a postmatch evaluation completed by the applicant's current residency program director. Applicants were evaluated on the following areas: academic record, professionalism, leadership, trainability/suitability for the specialty, and fit for the program.

Blueprint for action: steps toward a high-quality, high-value maternity care system.

Childbirth Connection hosted a 90th Anniversary national policy symposium, Transforming Maternity Care: A High Value Proposition, on April 3, 2009, in Washington, DC. Over 100 leaders from across the range of stakeholder perspectives were actively engaged in the symposium work to improve the quality and value of U.S.

Maternal healthcare needs assessment survey at Rabia Balkhi Hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan.

Objective: Since the Department of Health and Human Services chose Rabia Balkhi Hospital (RBH) in Kabul, Afghanistan, as a site for intervention in 2002, the status of women's health there has been of interest. This study created a tool to assess accessibility and quality of care of women admitted from May to July, 2005.

Methods: A 39-item questionnaire was created in English and translated into Dari.

Differential regulation of innate immune response genes in gingival epithelial cells stimulated with Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans.

Background And Objective: The gingival epithelium provides the first line of defense against colonization by periodontal pathogens, both as a physical barrier and by the production of inducible innate immune mediators such as beta-defensins and pro-inflammatory cytokines. The gram-negative bacterium Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans is implicated in the pathogenesis of localized aggressive periodontitis, although the bacterium is found widely in the healthy population. We hypothesized that gingival epithelial cell-derived innate immune mediators triggered in response to A.

Predictors of abortion provision among practicing obstetrician-gynecologists: a national survey.

Objective: The objective of the study was to identify the factors that predict whether physicians include pregnancy termination in their practices.

Study Design: We surveyed all 5055 obstetrician-gynecologists who became board certified between 1998 and 2001 about personal characteristics, career plans, intention to provide abortions before residency, residency training, and current abortion practice.

Results: Of 2149 respondents (43%), 22% had provided elective abortion in the past year.

Effect of quantitative feedback on student performance on the National Board Medical Examination in an obstetrics and gynecology clerkship.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine whether regular quantitative feedback improved medical student performance on the National Board of Medical Examiners Obstetrics and Gynecology subject test.

Study Design: We examined the effect of including regular quantitative feedback (in the form of biweekly quizzes) in the obstetrics and gynecology clerkship on student performance on the National Board of Medical Examiners Obstetrics and Gynecology examination at the University at Buffalo.

Results: Students who completed the clerkship format including the regular feedback scored significantly higher than students who completed the clerkship without feedback (70.

Activity of an antimicrobial peptide mimetic against planktonic and biofilm cultures of oral pathogens.

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are naturally occurring, broad-spectrum antimicrobial agents that have recently been examined for their utility as therapeutic antibiotics. Unfortunately, they are expensive to produce and are often sensitive to protease digestion. To address this problem, we have examined the activity of a peptide mimetic whose design was based on the structure of magainin, exhibiting its amphiphilic structure.

Obstetrician-gynecologists and primary care: training during obstetrics-gynecology residency and current practice patterns.

Purpose: To assess obstetrician-gynecologists' perceptions of their residency training in primary care, document health issues assessed at annual visits, and identify practice patterns of both generalist and specialist obstetrician-gynecologists.

Method: Questionnaires were mailed to a random sample of 1,711 American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Young Fellows in September 2005. Information was gathered on perceptions about adequacy of residency training, how well training prepared obstetrician-gynecologists for current practice, and typical practice patterns for various medical diagnoses.

Antimicrobial peptides in the airway.

The airway provides numerous defense mechanisms to prevent microbial colonization by the large numbers of bacteria and viruses present in ambient air. An important component of this defense is the antimicrobial peptides and proteins present in the airway surface fluid (ASF), the mucin-rich fluid covering the respiratory epithelium. These include larger proteins such as lysozyme and lactoferrin, as well as the cationic defensin and cathelicidin peptides.

The recruitment phoenix: strategies for attracting medical students into obstetrics and gynecology.

In less than a decade, the popularity of obstetrics and gynecology as a career choice has declined significantly. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and the Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics (APGO) are working to develop a multifaceted approach aimed at reversing this trend. We report on the findings and action plan developed by the ACOG Medical Student Recruitment Task Force as well as the current activities of APGO related to recruitment.

The effects of tamoxifen on the vaginal epithelium in postmenopausal women.

Although increased vaginal discharge occurs with treatment, clinicians often presume the effects of tamoxifen on the vaginal epithelium are antiestrogenic. We studied 16 postmenopausal women before they began tamoxifen treatment, at 6 months, and then at annual intervals for up to 6 years. Vaginal scrapings for cytology smears and maturation values (MV) for these were performed.

Primary care in obstetrics and gynecology resident education: a baseline survey of residents' perceptions and experiences.

Objective: To determine the perceptions and practices of American obstetrics and gynecology residents concerning primary care immediately before the institution of Residency Review Committee Special Requirements for Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Methods: The Council on Resident Education in Obstetrics and Gynecology In-Service Examination in 1995, given to 4361 residents, who represented all programs in the country, included a questionnaire on whether obstetrics and gynecology was primary care and whether they planned to do primary care after residency. Primary care services were categorized by counseling and screening, as defined by the U.

The in-training examination in obstetrics and gynecology: an attempt to establish a remediation indicator.

Objective: With the use of a university- and community hospital-based faculty, we attempted to determine at what performance level remediation would be recommended.

Study Design: The Committee on In-Training Examinations for Residents in Obstetrics and Gynecology Task Force on Standard-Based Scoring sent the 1991 examination to 16 university- and 12 community hospital-based faculty members. Given a standardized definition of a "borderline third-year resident," each faculty scored each item on the examination on whether that hypothetic resident would or would not correctly answer the item.

Headache.

An attempt has been made to provide an overview of headache management for the primary healthcare provider for women. No attempt has been made to delineate for the clinician all care related to the difficult-to-manage headache patient, but at the same time, information has been provided that should assist the clinician in treating this common disorder. Often, a comprehensive approach is needed, and appropriate referral may be necessary to other healthcare providers who are capable of providing more specific services.

Assessment of the resident in-training examination in obstetrics and gynecology.

An integral component for the evaluation of resident's cognitive knowledge is the examination developed under the auspices of the Council on Resident Education in Obstetrics and Gynecology (CREOG). We sought to assess the usefulness of this annual examination from the perspective of both residents and residency program directors. We were particularly interested in comparing the contemporary use of this examination with the original intent of CREOG when the examination was developed in 1968.