Changing Obstetrics and Gynecology Residency Education to Combat Reproductive Injustice

A Call to Action

Abstract

Although reproductive injustices and reproductive health disparities are well-documented in the United States, recent studies have begun to explore the health care professional's role in their perpetuation. We hypothesized that obstetrics and gynecology residents would observe reproductive injustices during their training. Thus, using a national survey, we asked obstetrics and gynecology residents to share clinical cases in which discrimination, bias, inequity, or injustice was involved in a patient's reproductive health care and queried their preparedness to respond. Through qualitative analysis, we found that respondents shared cases involving racism, discrimination, and structural barriers to care and that they felt poorly equipped to handle injustice. We call for clinician educators to combat reproductive injustice through three key changes to obstetrics and gynecology residency training: 1) incorporate reproductive justice training into formal residency education; 2) create safe spaces for residents to collectively debrief about their experiences with injustice and collaborate on care improvement; and 3) teach community engagement and advocacy skills that identify, center, and elevate local reproductive health priorities.

In Brief

Clinician educators can combat reproductive injustice by incorporating reproductive justice training into obstetrics and gynecology resident education, supporting resident debriefing, and engaging communities in advocacy.