Inventory of Evidence-Based Practices (EBPs) for Healthy Start Programs

Evidence-based practices include actions, activities, strategies, or approaches that improve the health of women, before, during, and after pregnancy in order to improve birth outcomes and give infants up to age two years a healthy start. Also included in the collection are informational materials and tools that make it easier to implement evidence-based practices. To search by title, use the main search box located at the top of this page.


Components of the Well-Woman Visit

Annual well-woman visits provide an excellent opportunity for health maintenance and preventive care, including preconception and interconception counseling. Under the Affordable Care Act of 2010, Medicaid and most private insurance plans cover these visits without copay. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists released these guidelines on recommended components of the annual visit based on previous evidence-based guidelines, current expert opinion, and the recommendations of a multidisciplinary task force. Recommendations on screening, laboratory tests, evaluation and counseling, and immunizations are organized into the age ranges 13-18, 19-45, 46-64, and >64.

Topics:

Alcohol/Drug Services Chronic Disease Depression Healthy Weight Immunization Intimate Partner Violence Nutrition Reproductive Life Planning/Family Planning Risk Assessment STDs including HIV Tobacco Cessation

Approaches:

Improve Women's Health

Benchmarks:

Well Woman Visits

Evidence Rating: III. Expert guidelines—Protocols, standards of practice, or recommendations based on expert consensus.

Interconception Care Project of California

The Interconception Care Project of California is a collection of recommendations to improve and promote the interconception health of women by maximizing care during the postpartum visit. The website contains links to free evidence-based clinical management algorithms for the 21 most common pregnancy and delivery complications in California. Patient education materials offering explanations of the conditions, treatment options, and self-care strategies to reduce risks in future pregnancies are also free and available in English and Spanish.

Topics:

Other Reproductive Life Planning/Family Planning Risk Assessment

Approaches:

Promote Quality

Benchmarks:

Birth Spacing

Evidence Rating: III. Expert guidelines—Protocols, standards of practice, or recommendations based on expert consensus.