Contact information:
Emily Godfrey, MD
godfreye@uw.edu
Research Team:
Ian M Bennett, Mae Dirac, Anna Fiastro, Emily Godfrey, Kris Ma, Grace Shih and Ying Zhang
Summary
Family medicine is guided by principles that ensure equitable access to care for individuals of all backgrounds, regardless of their circumstances. Family medicine clinics and physicians often serve as the sole reproductive healthcare providers in rural and underserved areas. This is especially important given the variability in access to abortion-specific services following the Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization in 2022, which overturned Roe v. Wade. Since June 24, 2022, at least 22 states have enacted laws that either ban or severely restrict access to abortion services.
Family physicians also play a crucial role in providing family planning services to medically complex patients of reproductive age. Approximately 70% of female patients aged 18-44 years seen by family physicians have two or more chronic medical or mental health conditions, underscoring the importance of integrating reproductive healthcare into primary care settings.
Our research focuses on innovative strategies to increase access to abortion and quality contraceptive care, including the implementation of new technologies and streamlined patient-centered protocols. Aligned with the core tenets of patient-centered care in family medicine, our research teams actively involve patients and community partners as integral members, ensuring that our approaches are responsive to the needs of those we serve.
Projects
- Access, Delivered: Innovative Abortion Provision in Primary Care
- Building Online Research Partnerships to Improve Sexual and Reproductive Health for Women with Cystic Fibrosis
- Health Equity Advancement in Maternal and Infant Care through Family Medicine: Developing a consensus-based prioritized research agenda for maternal health in primary care.