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Strengthen the Evidence for Maternal and Child Health Programs

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Evidence Tools
Well-Woman Visit

Introduction

This toolkit summarizes content from the Well-Woman Visit Evidence Accelerator and the MCHbest database. The peer-reviewed literature supporting this work can be found in the Established Evidence database. Use the resources below as you develop effective evidence-based/informed programs and measures.

From the MCH Block Grant Guidance. An annual well-woman visit provides a critical opportunity to receive recommended clinical preventive services, including screening, counseling, and immunizations, which can lead to appropriate identification, treatment, and prevention of disease to optimize the health of women before, between, andbeyondpotentialpregnancies.1 Forexample,screeningandmanagementofchronicconditions such as diabetes, and counseling to achieve a healthy weight and smoking cessation, can be advanced within a well woman visit to promote women’s health prior to and between pregnancies and improve subsequent maternal and perinatal outcomes.1 The Women’s Preventive Services Initiative (WPSI) is a coalition of national health professional organizations and patient advocates led by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and works to develop, review, and update recommendations for women’s healthcare preventive services. WPSI recommends at least one preventive care visit per year beginning in adolescence and continuing across the lifespan with services completed at a single visit or in a series of visits to ensure all necessary services are obtained.2

Goal. To increase the percent of women who have an annual preventive medical visit.

Note. Access other related measures in this Population Domain through the Toolkits page.

Detail Sheet: Start with the MCH Block Grant Guidance

DEFINITION

Numerator:

Number of women, ages 18 through 44, who report visiting a doctor for a routine checkup in the past year

Denominator:

Number of women, ages 18 through 44

Units: 100

Text: Percent

HEALTHY PEOPLE 2030 OBJECTIVE

Related to Access to Health Services (AHS) Objective 08: Increase the proportion of adults who get recommended evidence-based preventive health care. (Baseline: 8.55% in 2015, Target: 11.5%)

DATA SOURCES

Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS)

MCH POPULATION DOMAIN

Women/Maternal Health

MEASURE DOMAIN

Clinical Health Systems

1. Accelerate with Evidence—Start with the Science

The first step to accelerate effective, evidence-based/informed programs is ensuring that the strategies we implement are meaningful and have high potential to affect desired change. Read more about using evidence-based/informed programs and then use this section to find strategies that you can adopt or adapt for your needs.

Evidence-based/Informed Strategies: MCHbest Database

The following strategies have emerged from studies in the scientific literature as being effective in advancing the measure. Use the links below to read more about each strategy or access the MCHbest database to find additional strategies.

Chart of Evidence-Linked Strategies and Tools

Evidence-Informed

Evidence-Based

Mixed Evidence

Emerging Evidence

Expert Opinion

Moderate Evidence

Scientifically Rigorous

 

Field-Based Strategies: Find promising programs from AMCHP’s Innovation Hub

Emerging:

Promising:

Best:

2. Think Upstream with Planning Tools—Lead with the Need

The second step in developing effective, evidence-based/informed programs challenges us to plan upstream to ensure that our work addresses issues early and is measurable in “turning the curve” on big issues that face MCH populations. Read more about moving from root causes to responsive programs and then use this section to align your work with the data and needs of your populations.

Move from Need to Strategy

Use Root-Cause Analysis (RCA) and Results-Based Accountability (RBA) tools to build upon the science to determine how to address needs.

Planning Tools: Use these tools to move from data to action

3. Work Together with Implementation Tools—Move from Planning to Practice

The third step in developing effective, evidence-based/informed programs calls us to work together to ensure that programs are implementable and moveable within the realities of Title V programs and lead to improved health outcomes for all people. Read more about implementation tools designed for MCH population change and then use this section to develop responsive strategies to bring about change that is responsive to the needs of your populations.

Additional MCH Evidence Center Resources: Access supplemental materials from the literature

Implementation Resources: Use these field-generated resources to affect change

Practice. The following tools can be used to translate evidence to action to advance this SM:

Partnership. The following organizations focus efforts on supporting preventive care for women:

Alliance for Women’s Health & Prevention (AWHP). A non-profit women’s health advocacy organization working to ensure that all women and girls have access to high-quality preventive care.

Additional Resources:

  • The Well-Woman Visit, ACOG’s Committee opinion #755, describes the importance of the periodic women’s health visit and provides a general overview of women’s preventive services and care.
  • The Well-Woman Chart, produced by the Women’s Preventive Services Initiative (WPSI), is an evidence-based interactive chart summarizing age-based preventive service recommendations. Links to additional resources are included on the site.
  • Well-Woman Visit: Resource Overview: The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) has identified the following resources that may be helpful for OB-GYNs, other health care providers, and patients related to the well-woman visit.
  • AMCHP Resources:
    • Health for Every Mother: A Maternal Health Resource and Planning Guide for States. This guide for Title V programs and their partners provides a synthesis of program and policy recommendations and offers a framework to support states in identifying next steps. Contents include strategies and planning tools for strengthening maternal data systems, increasing the value of an investment in maternal health, enabling healthy living, improving access to care, ensuring high quality health care for women, and ensuring readiness and response to obstetric emergencies.
    • Implementation Toolkit for National Performance Measure 1. This toolkit contains examples of state strategies being used to address NPM 1 in Title V programs.
  • March of Dimes Outcomes Project: Use the five overarching strategies identified by MoD.

References

Introductory References: From the MCH Block Grant Guidance

1 ACOG Committee Opinion No. 755: Well-Woman Visit. Obstet Gynecol. 2018;132(4):e181-e186. d o i :10.1097/AO G .0000000000002897. https://journals.lww.com/greenjournal/Fulltext/2018/10000/ACOG_Committee_Opinion_No__755__Wel l_Woman_Visit.61.aspx
2 Women’s Preventive Services Initiative. https://www.womenspreventivehealth.org/

This project is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under grant number U02MC31613, MCH Advanced Education Policy, $3.5 M. This information or content and conclusions are those of the author and should not be construed as the official position or policy of, nor should any endorsements be inferred by HRSA, HHS or the U.S. Government.