Sarah C. Wilhelm, Susan Eisendrath, MPH, Shana Brown, MPH, and Connie Engel, MA. Reproductive Health Initiative, American Medical Women's Association, 801 N. Fairfax St., Suite 400, Alexandria, VA 22314, 206-325-1932, scw9@u.washington.edu

Medical education is often not sufficient in its coverage of topics related to reproductive health.¹ In 1996, AMWA’s Reproductive Health Initiative (RHI) developed the RHI Model Curriculum (Curriculum) to facilitate curricular change in areas related to reproductive health. RHI collected data on the use of the Curriculum through: 1) evaluation and tracking forms from all users of the hard copy edition of the Curriculum, 2) Web surveys completed by users who downloaded the Curriculum through RHI’s Web site, and 3) Web surveys of international users who downloaded the Curriculum. Data were analyzed to determine: 1) The percentage of U.S. medical schools using the Curriculum, 2) The scope of the Curriculum's use through all four years of medical school and in residency programs, and 3) the utility of the Curriculum in international settings. Results indicate that the Curriculum is used in some capacity in about half of all U.S. medical schools. Evaluation efforts have been most successful in assessing the Curriculum’s use as the basis of fourth-year electives in reproductive health, though preliminary results indicate that the Curriculum has also been used in a variety of innovative ways in U.S. medical schools and residency programs and internationally in over 24 countries. The Second Edition of the Curriculum, released in mid-2004, features additional content areas, a streamlined and Web-friendly format, and an expanded Implementation Guide. Additional data will be collected on specific uses of the Curriculum in U.S. medical schools, particularly its application in courses other than fourth-year electives.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant in this session will be able to

• Describe the content of the RHI Model Curriculum.
• Assess the extent and scope of the Curriculum’s use in medical schools in the U.S. and internationally.
• Identify ways in which the Curriculum might be used in his/her medical school or residency program.
• Describe the new features and content of the RHI Model Curriculum, 2nd ed.

Keywords: Reproductive Health, Curricula

Related Web page: www.amwa-doc.org/RHI.htm

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.