Reproductive Health in the United States: A Review of the Recent Social Work Literature: Table 1:

Abstract

Reproductive health is an important area affecting a woman's overall health and well-being. The examination of reproductive health and barriers to care is pertinent to the social work profession and should be a focus of social work practice, education, research, and advocacy. The authors conducted a literature search of articles published in the social work literature from 2010 to 2014. The findings reveal important published articles that increase our knowledge of the reproductive health of women in the United States. Most published articles focused on pregnancy and birth outcomes. Articles also addressed sexually transmitted infections; abortion; intimate partner violence; prostitution; access to care; cancer screening; views toward contraception; hysterectomies; breastfeeding; menopause; and the intersection of reproductive rights, religion, and social justice. This review also identified unexamined areas that require further social work attention and consideration.

Reproductive Justice and the Social Work Profession: Common Grounds and Current Trends

“…Social work students were the sample for the quantitative article (Begun, Bird, Ramseyer Winter, Massey Combs, & McKay, 2016). The literature review investigated the presence of reproductive health topics in the social work literature (Wright et al, 2015). All articles ( n = 3) focused on the United States.…”

“…Scholars also note the practical need for social workers to, at a bare minimum, have an understanding of reproductive rights since much of social work practice involves maternal and child health care (Alzate, 2009; Wright et al, 2015). Alzate (2009) argues for the importance of including reproductive and sexual health in the profession for both practical and ethical reasons.…”

“…Despite its importance, reproductive rights and justice are not frequently addressed in social work publications. Previous reviews have analyzed the reproductive health and family planning literature (Wright, Bird, & Frost, 2015), but this is the first to specifically analyze the scope of reproductive justice in the social work literature.…”

Zika: A Missed Opportunity to Protect Women's Health and Prevent Unwanted Pregnancies

“…Long-standing and ongoing politically and ideologically driven legislation and judicial actions in states across the country have resulted in increased restrictions on reproductive rights in recent years (NARAL -Pro-Choice America Foundation, 2015). These include regulations dictating the circumstances under which women may obtain effective contraception, safe and legal abortion, infertility treatment, and the comprehensive sexual education necessary to make informed decisions about their own bodies (Hess et al, 2015;Wright, Bird, & Frost, 2015). The months-long delay in appropriating more than $1 billion to fight Zika by a Congress embattled over provisions to defund Planned Parenthood highlights the nation's ongoing hostility around issues of women's reproductive health and rights (Dreweke, 2016).…”

The Status of Women's Reproductive Rights and Adverse Birth Outcomes

“…In 1994, the United Nation's International Conference on Population and Development defined and endorsed reproductive rights as fundamental human rights and identified reproductive health as a core component of overall health and well-being (United Nations Population Fund, 2007). In the United States, politically and ideologically driven legislation and judicial actions in states across the country have resulted in increased restrictions on reproductive rights in recent years (NARAL-Pro Choice American Foundation, 2015), including regulations dictating the circumstances under which women may obtain effective contraception, safe and legal abortion, infertility treatment, and the comprehensive sexual education necessary to make informed decisions about their own bodies (Hess et al, 2015;Wright, Bird, & Frost, 2015). In response to increasingly limited access to abortion, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has called for cessation and repeal of legislative restrictions that are harmful to women's health (American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, 2014).…”