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Women's Health

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Women have unique health needs, and face inequity in both quality and outcomes of health care. RAND's work has highlighted gender gaps in health care access and quality, measured the health needs of specific female populations, evaluated programs aimed at improving outcomes, and demonstrated how policy impacts women's options.

Commentary

Women and COVID-19: Studying the Impact of Sex and Gender

Apr 13, 2020

Much of current medical evidence is based largely on men. The current COVID-19 pandemic presents a unique opportunity to examine the potential value of asking questions about sex and gender differences to inform ongoing policy decisions.
Research Brief

Reducing Child Deaths in Nigeria

Jun 22, 2020

A program paid expectant mothers in Nigeria to use prenatal, delivery, and postnatal health services, resulting in an increase in use of care. This led to a substantial decrease in child deaths. Scaling this program up across Nigeria could reduce stillbirths by 85,000 annually.

Explore Women's Health

Essay

Reducing Disparities in Infant Mortality: Using Big Data to Help Babies at Risk

Black babies in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania—and across America—face much higher mortality rates than white babies. Researchers pulled together thousands of data points on more than 150,000 births to better predict who is at risk and how to help them.

Jul 1, 2021
Commentary

Mothers Need a Continuous System of Care Even After Babies Are Born

In the United States, babies are born into a system of well-child care—a series of planned health care visits designed to protect their health from day one through age six. But no such system exists for their mothers. How do we create a system of health care for mothers that mirrors well-child care?

May 10, 2021
Report

Informing the Development of Standardized Clinical Definitions of Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome and Neonatal Opioid Withdrawal Syndrome: Results of Two Modified-Delphi Expert Panels

The authors describe the results of two modified-Delphi expert panels used to inform the work of a federal steering committee on the development of clinical definitions of neonatal abstinence syndrome and neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome.

May 3, 2021
Report

Societal Impact of Research Funding for Women's Health

An examination of the impact of increased funding for research on Alzheimer's disease and Alzheimer's disease-related dementias in women showed that small investments in women's health research can yield large gains, including benefits above investing in general research.

Apr 22, 2021
Journal Article

Association of Primary and Specialty Care Integration on Physician Communication and Cancer Screening in Safety-Net Clinics

This study aimed to describe strategies CHCs use to integrate care with specialists and examine whether more strongly integrated CHCs have higher rates of screening for colorectal and cervical cancers and report better communication with specialists.

Feb 12, 2021
Research Brief

Using an Innovative Database and Machine Learning to Predict and Reduce Infant Mortality

Researchers created a unique database linking medical, social, and demographic information, then used machine learning techniques to evaluate risk of infant mortality and develop intervention recommendations to reduce each infant's risk of mortality

Feb 4, 2021
Journal Article

The Impact of Parental Involvement Laws on the Abortion Rate of Minors

We conduct a comprehensive analysis of the effect of parental involvement laws on the incidence of abortions to minors in the United States.

Jan 26, 2021
Journal Article

Engaging Patients and Professionals to Evaluate the Seriousness of Maternal and Child Health Outcomes: Protocol for a Modified Delphi Study

This article determines the seriousness of 11 maternal and child health outcomes associated with pregnancy weight gain, by engaging patients and maternal and child health professionals using an online modified Delphi panel process.

Jan 12, 2021
Journal Article

Rating the Seriousness of Maternal and Child Health Outcomes Linked with Pregnancy Weight Gain

This article estimates the seriousness of eleven maternal and child health outcomes that have been consistently associated with pregnancy weight gain by engaging patients and health professionals.

Jan 12, 2021
Report

Examining Interventions to Address Infant Mortality in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania

Poor birth and infant outcomes and pronounced racial disparities persist in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, despite robust maternal and child health and social service systems. Which interventions are the most effective and how does effectiveness vary for women with different risk and other factors?

Jan 6, 2021
Report

The Behavioral Health of Minority Service Members

Members of minority groups make up a larger percentage of the U.S. military than ever before. Identifying whether and where behavioral health disparities exist among them can help the Department of Defense better address troops' mental health needs and improve force readiness.

Dec 17, 2020
Journal Article

Effects of Women's Weight Changes on Adverse Outcomes in a Second Pregnancy

This article estimates the effects of women's weight changes in four sequential perinatal periods across first and second pregnancies on adverse maternal and neonatal outcomes in the second pregnancy.

Nov 13, 2020
Periodical

RAND Review: September-October 2020

Feature stories explore how Pardee RAND is helping to shape the future of public policy through its Faculty Leaders Program; the safety and sustainability of the U.S. blood supply; and how telemedicine is changing the delivery of health care.

Sep 8, 2020
Journal Article

Association of Pregnancy and Insurance Status With Treatment Access for Opioid Use Disorder

In this cross-sectional study with random assignment of clinicians and simulated-patient callers, many women, especially pregnant women, faced barriers to accessing treatment. Given the high out-of-pocket costs and lack of acceptance of insurance among many clinicians, access to affordable opioid use disorder treatment is a significant concern.

Sep 3, 2020
Journal Article

Standardizing Care to Manage Bleeding Disorders in Adolescents with Heavy Menses: A Joint Project from the ISTH Pediatric/Neonatal and Women's Health SSCs

We developed heavy menstrual bleeding (HMB) care considerations using a modified-Delphi process; clinicians can use these care considerations to optimize the management of adolescents with HMB.

Aug 21, 2020
Journal Article

Medications for Opioid Use Disorder Among Pregnant Women Referred by Criminal Justice Agencies Before and After Medicaid Expansion: A Retrospective Study of Admissions to Treatment Centers in the United States

Pregnant women with OUD referred by criminal justice agencies between 1992 and 2017 were consistently less likely to receive evidence-based treatment than women referred through other sources.

Jun 30, 2020
Blog

The Postal Service, Election Security, Reducing Child Deaths: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on the role of the U.S. Postal Service, preparing for the presidential election, reducing child deaths in Nigeria, and more.

Jun 26, 2020
Report

Evaluation of Los Angeles County's 2019 "Spark the True You" Mental Health Campaign

Los Angeles County, in partnership with the Los Angeles Sparks basketball team, conducted a mental health campaign aimed at women veterans. It did not reach large numbers but provided new information about mental health among those it did reach.

Jun 25, 2020
Journal Article

Consensus Guidelines and State Policies: The Gap Between Principle and Practice at the Intersection of Substance Use and Pregnancy

We review the change over time in state-level policy environments around substance use in pregnancy and contrast the policy response with the principles and guidance from professional societies and federal agencies.

Jun 3, 2020

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