Prevalence and Correlates of Having a Regular Physician among Women Presenting for Induced Abortion

Patient Perspectives Regarding Clinician Communication During Telemedicine Compared With In-Clinic Abortion

OBJECTIVE

To explore patient perspectives regarding patient-clinician communication during telemedicine medication abortion compared with traditional, facility based, in-clinic visits.

METHODS

We conducted semi-structured interviews with participants who received either live, face-to-face telemedicine or in-clinic medication abortion from a large, reproductive health care facility in Washington State. Using Miller's conceptual framework for patient-doctor communication in telemedicine settings, we developed questions exploring participants' experiences of the medication abortion consultation, including the clinician's verbal and nonverbal interpersonal approach and communication of relevant medical information, and the setting where care was received. We used inductive-deductive constant comparative analysis to identify major themes. We summarize patient perspectives using patient-clinician communication terms outlined in Dennis' quality abortion care indicator list.

RESULTS

Thirty participants completed interviews (aged 20-38 years), 20 of whom had medication abortion by telemedicine and 10 who received in-clinic services. Participants who received telemedicine abortion services reported high-quality patient-clinician communication, which came from their freedom to choose their consultation location, and reported feeling more relaxed during clinical encounters. In contrast, most in-clinic participants portrayed their consultations as lengthy, chaotic, and lacking comfort. In all other domains, both telemedicine and in-clinic participants reported similar levels of interpersonal connection to their clinicians. Both groups appreciated medical information about how to take the abortion pills and relied heavily on clinic-based printed materials and independent online resources to answer questions during the at-home termination process. Both telemedicine and in-clinic participant groups were highly satisfied with their care.

CONCLUSION

Patient-centered communication skills used by clinicians during facility based, in-clinic care translated well to the telemedicine setting. However, we found that patients who received medication abortion through telemedicine favorably ranked their patient-clinician communication overall as compared with those in traditional, in-clinic settings. In this way, telemedicine abortion appears to be a beneficial patient-centered approach to this critical reproductive health service.

Postabortion Medicaid Enrollment and the Affordable Care Act Medicaid Expansion in Oregon

Background: The Affordable Care Act Medicaid expansion had the potential to increase continuity of insurance coverage and remove barriers to accessing health services following an abortion in states where Medicaid pays for abortion. We examined the association of Medicaid expansion with postabortion Medicaid enrollment and described postabortion preventive reproductive services among Medicaid-enrolled women in Oregon. Methods: We used Medicaid claims and enrollment data to identify abortions to women ages 20-44 in 2009-2017 (N = 30,786), classified into a treatment group-those likely to be affected by Medicaid expansion-and a comparison group. Outcomes included Medicaid enrollment (number of months enrolled and any lapse in enrollment) in the 6 and 12 months postabortion. Difference-in-differences analyses were used to compare outcomes preexpansion (2009-2012) and postexpansion (2014-2017) for treatment and comparison groups. Linear regression models were adjusted for age, race/ethnicity, rurality, and month. We described receipt of preventive reproductive services in 0-2 months and in 3-12 months postabortion. Results: Medicaid expansion was associated with enrollment increases of 2.0 and 4.7 months and with declines in any enrollment lapse of 54 and 48 percentage-points over 6 and 12 months postabortion, respectively (p < 0.001). Many who remained enrolled through postabortion received preventive care including contraceptive services (41%) and screening for sexually transmitted infections (23%). Conclusions: Medicaid expansion may increase continuity of insurance coverage for those receiving abortions, and in turn promote access to preventive services that can improve subsequent reproductive health outcomes.

A Novel Lay Health Worker Training to Help Women Engage in Postabortion Contraception and Well-Woman Care

Young women, low-income women, and women of color make up a disproportionate share of abortion patients and experience higher rates of unintended pregnancy, maternal morbidity and mortality, and infant mortality. Furthermore, these individuals are also less likely to have access to preventive gynecologic care. Whereas lay health worker interventions have been developed to help link individuals to care in other fields, the use of such interventions to link individuals to preventive care after abortion is novel. This article describes a training protocol and curriculum that provided nonmedically trained individuals with knowledge, skills, and competency to conduct a behavioral theory–based counseling intervention to help individuals achieve self-identified goals regarding obtaining postabortion reproductive health care and contraception. When piloted with 60 patients presenting for abortion who lacked a regular health care provider and desired to delay pregnancy for at least 6 months, participants found the lay health worker skills and the counseling session highly acceptable. Specifically, participants reported feeling comfortable speaking to lay health workers about contraception and reproductive health care. These findings indicate that lay health worker interventions may present an important opportunity to help individuals address their postabortion preventive and contraceptive health care needs.