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Publicly Funded Family Planning Organizations’ Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Texas

INTRODUCTION: After the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the use of family planning services decreased, but there are limited data on how safety net providers were affected. METHODS: Between November 2020 and March 2021, we conducted in-depth interviews with administrators at health departments, fede...

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Autores principales: Lerma, Klaira, Carpenter, Emma, Chatillon, Anna, White, Kari
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Jacobs Institute of Women's Health, George Washington University. Published by Elsevier Inc. 2023
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9666371/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/36535886
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.whi.2022.11.003
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author Lerma, Klaira
Carpenter, Emma
Chatillon, Anna
White, Kari
author_facet Lerma, Klaira
Carpenter, Emma
Chatillon, Anna
White, Kari
author_sort Lerma, Klaira
collection PubMed
description INTRODUCTION: After the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the use of family planning services decreased, but there are limited data on how safety net providers were affected. METHODS: Between November 2020 and March 2021, we conducted in-depth interviews with administrators at health departments, federally qualified health centers, and specialized family planning organizations across Texas about pandemic-related changes in family planning services. We analyzed interview transcripts using an inductive thematic approach. RESULTS: Administrators at the 19 participating organizations described pervasive service disruptions. Some organizations closed for 6–8 weeks at the pandemic's onset owing to safety uncertainties and difficulty interpreting Texas' March 2020 executive order prohibiting “nonessential” medical services; others later suspended services after staff exposures. Health departments and federally qualified health centers commonly decreased family planning services to focus on COVID-19 response, leaving specialized family planning organizations to absorb displaced reproductive health care clients. Some of the advantages of service delivery modifications—including telehealth, curbside and drive-through prescription pickup, and medication by mail—were difficult to realize; barriers included low reimbursement, necessary patient examinations, and clients' confidentiality concerns and lack of technological resources. CONCLUSIONS: Texas’ diverse network of family planning organizations illustrated a range of responses to the pandemic, and organizations often focused on their core missions—public health, primary care, or family planning.
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spelling pubmed-96663712022-11-16 Publicly Funded Family Planning Organizations’ Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Texas Lerma, Klaira Carpenter, Emma Chatillon, Anna White, Kari Womens Health Issues Covid-19 INTRODUCTION: After the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the use of family planning services decreased, but there are limited data on how safety net providers were affected. METHODS: Between November 2020 and March 2021, we conducted in-depth interviews with administrators at health departments, federally qualified health centers, and specialized family planning organizations across Texas about pandemic-related changes in family planning services. We analyzed interview transcripts using an inductive thematic approach. RESULTS: Administrators at the 19 participating organizations described pervasive service disruptions. Some organizations closed for 6–8 weeks at the pandemic's onset owing to safety uncertainties and difficulty interpreting Texas' March 2020 executive order prohibiting “nonessential” medical services; others later suspended services after staff exposures. Health departments and federally qualified health centers commonly decreased family planning services to focus on COVID-19 response, leaving specialized family planning organizations to absorb displaced reproductive health care clients. Some of the advantages of service delivery modifications—including telehealth, curbside and drive-through prescription pickup, and medication by mail—were difficult to realize; barriers included low reimbursement, necessary patient examinations, and clients' confidentiality concerns and lack of technological resources. CONCLUSIONS: Texas’ diverse network of family planning organizations illustrated a range of responses to the pandemic, and organizations often focused on their core missions—public health, primary care, or family planning. Jacobs Institute of Women's Health, George Washington University. Published by Elsevier Inc. 2023 2022-11-16 /pmc/articles/PMC9666371/ /pubmed/36535886 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.whi.2022.11.003 Text en © 2022 Jacobs Institute of Women's Health, George Washington University. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Since January 2020 Elsevier has created a COVID-19 resource centre with free information in English and Mandarin on the novel coronavirus COVID-19. The COVID-19 resource centre is hosted on Elsevier Connect, the company's public news and information website. Elsevier hereby grants permission to make all its COVID-19-related research that is available on the COVID-19 resource centre - including this research content - immediately available in PubMed Central and other publicly funded repositories, such as the WHO COVID database with rights for unrestricted research re-use and analyses in any form or by any means with acknowledgement of the original source. These permissions are granted for free by Elsevier for as long as the COVID-19 resource centre remains active.
spellingShingle Covid-19
Lerma, Klaira
Carpenter, Emma
Chatillon, Anna
White, Kari
Publicly Funded Family Planning Organizations’ Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Texas
title Publicly Funded Family Planning Organizations’ Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Texas
title_full Publicly Funded Family Planning Organizations’ Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Texas
title_fullStr Publicly Funded Family Planning Organizations’ Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Texas
title_full_unstemmed Publicly Funded Family Planning Organizations’ Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Texas
title_short Publicly Funded Family Planning Organizations’ Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Texas
title_sort publicly funded family planning organizations’ response to the covid-19 pandemic in texas
topic Covid-19
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9666371/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/36535886
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.whi.2022.11.003
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