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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

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

The authors use predictive models and a causal inference framework to understand the effectiveness of infant-mortality interventions in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, where poor birth and infant outcomes and pronounced racial disparities persist.

Jan 6, 2021
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
Commentary

Do We Know How to Treat Alcohol Misuse in Women?

Despite the many clinical trials that have demonstrated the effectiveness and safety of treatments for alcohol use disorder, we still know little about whether men and women respond differently to treatment. Without knowing whether recommended treatments are effective for women, women are vulnerable to the consequences of alcohol misuse.

Apr 29, 2020
Blog

U.S. Gun Policy, Reopening Schools, Prepping for a Hurricane: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on what scientific evidence says about the effects of U.S. gun laws, how schools may have to change when they reopen, preparing for a COVID-19 hurricane, and more.

Apr 24, 2020
Infographic

State Policies Related to Substance Use in Pregnancy

This infographic illustrates the evolution from 2000 to 2015 of state policy environments related to substance use in pregnancy. Punitive or potentially punitive policies were more commonly enacted than were policies supporting treatment.

Feb 14, 2020
News Release

The NHS Spends Significantly Less on Pregnancy-Related Research Compared with Other Health Conditions

The National Health Service spends significantly less on pregnancy-related research compared with other health conditions. Funding for pregnancy research totaled £255 million from 2013 to 2017, or about £51 million a year. As pregnancy care costs the NHS £5.8 billion annually, this means that for every £1 spent on pregnancy care, less than 1 penny is spent on research.

Jan 14, 2020
Report

Pregnancy research review: Policy report

This study presents a review of UK pregnancy research needs and priorities, comparing this to current research expenditure and setting the findings in the context of NHS costs related to pregnancy.

Jan 13, 2020
Journal Article

Healthcare at the Beginning of Life and Child Survival: Evidence from a Cash Transfer Experiment in Nigeria

We study the effects of a cash transfer program in Nigeria in which households were offered a payment of $14 conditioned on uptake of health services.

Dec 20, 2019
News Release

Punishing Pregnant Women for Substance Use Is Linked to Higher Rates of Newborns Experiencing Opioid Withdrawal

State policies that impose punitive action against pregnant women who use illicit substances are associated with higher rates of infants being born with opioid withdrawal. This suggests that policymakers should instead focus on public health approaches that bolster prevention and expand access to treatment.

Nov 13, 2019

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