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Hide the Birth Control
Scholastic and Resources for Teachers
LARC Reimbursement Guide Released
USPSTF Updates Its Breast Cancer Screening Recommendations
FPAR 2.0 Data Element Survey
NFPRHA's Special Report on Family Planning
Montana Co-op Provider Forum
Life is Short - Smile!
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April 22, 2015

Quote of the Week 

What you do speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you say.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson
Hide the Birth Control 
Hide the Birth Control

 

What is the primary reason teens give for not using birth control? They are afraid that their parents will find out, according to new public opinion data released today by The National Campaign. Fully 68% of teens in the survey expressed concern about parents discovering they were using birth control. The results of the survey can be found in our monthly Survey Says series.

 

For their part, when adults were asked how they would react if they found out their teen was having sex:

  • 68% said they hoped teens would talk to them so they could help ensure they were using birth control.
  • 21% said they hoped teens would talk to them so they could try to convince them to stop having sex.
  • 4% said they would be angry, and 3% said they would rather not know about it.
Scholastic and Resources for Teachers

Scholastic and Resources for Teachers. 

 

A group of teen parents talk about the joys and challenges they face as young parents in the new issue of Choices magazine. Choices is dedicated to the health and wellbeing of middle and high-school students and is published by Scholastic. Since 1920, Scholastic has been providing educations materials to tens of thousands of schools. Also available are new sex education resources for teachers.

  
LARC Reimbursement Guide Released
LARC Reimbursement Guide Released

 

NFPRHA is pleased to announce the release of Intrauterine Devices and Implants: A Guide to Reimbursement, which provides guidance on navigating the stocking, billing, and reimbursement of long-acting reversible contraceptive (LARC) methods. This guide was produced in collaboration with the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), National Health Law Program (NHeLP), National Women's Law Center (NWLC), and University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) Bixby Center for Global Reproductive Health.

  
USPSTF Updates Its Breast Cancer Screening Recommendations
USPSTF Updates Its Breast Cancer Screening Recommendations

 

The updated draft guidelines for breast cancer screening issued by the US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) remain largely unchanged from the 2009 revision.

 

The update reiterates that mammography screening is most beneficial for women 50 to 74 years of age and that women 40 to 49 years should make individual decisions about screening in partnership with their doctors.

 

"What these recommendations are reaffirming is that mammography is an important tool in preventing deaths from breast cancer, and that the value of mammography increases with age," said Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, PhD, MD, vice cochair of the USPSTF. Women 50 to 74 years "are the ones most likely to benefit from it, and we are recommending biennial screening in this age group."

 

For women 40 to 49 years, the decision to screen should involve a more individualized approach that recognizes the potential benefits and the potential harms.

 

"We believe that women should be aware of the potential benefits and harms and be guided to make a decision based on their own values and preferences," Dr Bibbins-Domingo told Medscape Medical News.

 

For women 40 to 49 years, screening mammography can reduce the risk of dying from breast cancer, but the number of deaths averted is much smaller than it is in older women, and the number of false-positive tests and unnecessary biopsies is higher.

 

In the update, the UPSTF reaffirms its position that, for women older than 75, the evidence is insufficient to assess the benefits and harms of screening mammography.

  
To read the full article click here.
FPAR 2.0 Data Element Survey
Dear Title X Grantee:
 
The Office of Population Affairs (OPA), in collaboration with John Snow Inc (JSI), recently sent a voluntary survey to all of your Title X-funded clinical service sites. In preparation for FPAR 2.0, the survey is intended to gather information regarding which data elements sites may already be collecting and how easy it will be to modify their systems to collect and report for FPAR 2.0. The survey was sent to the email address listed for each service site in the OPA Clinic Database. OPA is asking respondents to complete the survey by May 15th. Responses are confidential.
 
Can grantees participate too? Grantees are also welcome to participate. If you are a grantee that does not provide clinical services on-site, when you fill out the survey, please think about the electronic system that is most commonly used in your network to collect and report FPAR data.
 
The survey should be completed by one staff member who is knowledgeable about the data collection, data systems(s), and FPAR reporting procedures of the electronic system you choose to focus on. The survey should take no more than 20 minutes and can be completed in more than one sitting. Please ask all your sites delivering clinical services to complete this survey by 
May 15, 2015You can fill out the survey here.

What's in it for me? As you are completing the survey, a copy of the
FPAR 2.0 Data Inventory Checklist* will become available for you, which will help you assess what information your site needs to capture at every family planning visit. This checklist will help you assess what information your site needs to capture at every family planning visit. OPA has recommended questions that you/your sites can pose to EHR vendors about their ability to capture the proposed 2.0 data elements within their system.
 
If you need assistance completing the survey, please contact Amy Flynn at [email protected] or 617-482-9485.
 
Thank you for encouraging your service sites to participate!

*DISCLAIMER: Please be aware that the FPAR 2.0 Data Inventory Checklist you will download is still a working DRAFT that continues to evolve as OPA proceeds with vetting the technical specification through Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise (www.ihe.net).  OPA anticipates that the data elements and their definitions will not be finalized until late summer 2016. 
  
NFPRHA's Special Report on Family Planning

NFPRHA's Special Report on Family Planning
 

Struggling with a significant loss in federal funding since 2010, Title X-funded health centers have been forced to scale back hours, layoff staff, and even close health centers. All of these troubling factors have fueled the downward trend in patient volume. At the same time, despite the deterioration of the network, Title X has doubled down on its efforts to lead the field by advancing best practices for clinical care. Download NFPRHA's special report on family planning in safety-net setting, Shortchanging Family Planning: How Cuts Threaten America's Health. To access other NFPRHA publications, sign-in using your log in information for NFPRHA's website.

Montana Co-op Provider Forum 
 
Montana Co-op Provider Forum
 
The Montana Health Co-op is hosting Provider Forums that are being held across the state. It would be a great opportunity for all clinics to attend, especially those that might be having trouble with reimbursements.
  
  
For more information click here.
Life is Short - Smile!

  

                            
                     

Please forward this on to any parties that may be interested.