This comprehensive manual contains essential elements aimed at improving the quality of healthcare provided to women across the life span. It provides an enhanced definition of the role and clinical skills of providers, including physician assistants (PAs), certified nurse midwives (CNMs), and nurse practitioners (NPs). The book offers an integrated and unique approach to the healthcare of women. It provides an excellent resource to link theory to clinical practice using critical thinking skills. The book is organized into 10 sections comprising 46 chapters. It begins with a comprehensive review of the basic anatomy and physiology of women. A complete understanding of the complexities of the menstrual cycle and normal vaginal flora, examined at the cellular level, is imperative for accurate understanding and diagnoses of conditions that affect women. The book discusses elements of a comprehensive, developmentally relevant health history with a unique approach to the physiological, psychological, and sociocultural components involved. The basic techniques of the physical examination—with a focus on the gynecologic examination—are outlined. The book provides a comprehensive guide to the assessment of obesity and body mass index. It discusses evaluation of special populations such as pregnant women, lesbian women, and transgenders. The book also describes evaluation of menopausal status, osteoporosis, vulvovaginal atrophy, pelvic pain, vulvodynia, polycystic ovarian syndrome, abnormal uterine bleeding, pelvic organ prolapse, and urinary incontinence. It contains critical information regarding women at risk for sexually transmitted infections. A nationally tested questionnaire is included to help identify the victims of violence and abuse. The book presents assessment of infertility and subfertility. It discusses contraception, cervical cancer prevention, vaginal microscopy, sonohysteroscopy, urinalysis, and other investigative procedures and workups. The book finally describes advanced techniques such as vulvar and endometrial biopsy, acrochordonectomy, cervical polypectomy, pessary insertion, intrauterine insemination, and percutaneous tibial nerve stimulation.

This book is written for several primary audiences: midwives, midwifery students, other health professionals and groups, and members of the public who are interested in midwifery and midwifery care. It is divided into seven sections. Section I presents the early history of midwifery in the United States (U.S.) for the period 1600s to 1940s. Prior to the Civil War, childbirth practice in the South for both Blacks and Whites was largely in the hands of traditional African midwives. The second section provides the practice and educational aspects of the midwives in the U.S. from the 1920s to early 1950s. Coverage in this section include public health nursing, the Sheppard-Towner Act, Frontier Nursing Service, family-centered maternity care and natural child birth, Manhattan Midwifery School, Lobenstine Midwifery School and other schools. Section III describes the resurgence of U.S. community and lay midwives and their early education from 1960s to 1980s. The fourth section talks about the development of three midwifery organizations, namely, the American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM), Midwives Alliance of North America (MANA) and the National Association of Certified Professional Midwives (NACPM). The U.S. nurse-midwifery education and practice for the period 1950s-1980s is covered in the fifth section of the book. One of the chapters describes the technological advances made in the profession and the continuing quest for pain relief. Section VI focuses on direct-entry midwifery education and credentialing in the U.S. with chapters covering accreditation, certification and licensure. The final section of the book is devoted to midwifery relationships. Separate chapters discuss federal legislations affecting the practice, the relationships of midwives with women, with childbearing with families, with physicians, with nurses and with midwives themselves. The last chapter focuses on the International Confederation of Midwives (ICNM).

Field education has been identified as the “signature pedagogy” social work education. The practice of having students working alongside community practitioners is almost as old as the social work profession itself. Field education, which involves students working with practicing social workers to learn the knowledge, skills, and values of the social work profession, brings the intellectual content of the classroom into focus with everyday tasks and responsibilities. Therefore, the work of community-based practitioners who supervise social work interns is essential to our profession. This book includes content on how to recruit a practicum student, as well as useful information about effective supervision, learning assessment planning and development, integration of theory and practice, helpful evaluation techniques, and teaching social work ethics. It provides an introduction to the practice of field education, along with useful recommendations about how to maximize the learning experience of practicum students. College and university social work programs provide regular orientations to their field education programs. Students should adhere to agency expectations regarding dress, language, and boundaries. Once students are aware of the agency culture, they should be held accountable for meeting those expectations. Effective communication between the academic institution and the field instructor/agency setting is indispensable to the social work practicum process. Several models exist to help students determine an ethical course of action or to resolve an ethical dilemma. Practicing as an ethical social worker requires not only knowledge of the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Code of Ethics, but also the ability to apply sound decision-making strategies to everyday situations encountered in social work practice.

This book examines efforts involving midwifery to improve the health of women and children in the United States, including Strong Start, US MERA, CenteringPregnancy®, and focuses on physiologic birth. While the first chapter deals with midwifery issues in the United States and other countries, the second discusses an action plan to create a high-quality, high-value maternity care system that facilitates physiologic childbearing for women and babies. Searching for evidence-based information is a best practice skill in providing midwifery care, and the third chapter deals with the evaluation and usage of scientific evidence. Midwives are most known for their care of women during the prenatal, intra-partum, and postpartum periods. There has also been a renewed focus on nutrition during pregnancy and its role in determining a newborn’s genetic phenotype. Chapters 6 and 7 describe the evidence-based best practices for the preconception, antepartum, intrapartum, and postpartum care of the obese woman, and methods to assist women in reaching optimal prenatal weight gain. Women need to be up to date on all adult vaccinations prior to pregnancy, and need to receive the influenza injection and the Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis) vaccine in each pregnancy. African American women experience health disparities, including maternal and infant mortality, preterm birth, and low birth weight, at a rate two to three times that of White women. Midwives need to understand how the move toward value-based purchasing.

The third edition is designed for nurse practitioners, nurse midwives, clinical nurse specialists, physician assistants, students in these areas, and other health professionals who provide prenatal and postpartum care in outpatient settings. Since the first edition was published, practice knowledge has changed in many areas and we were aware of the importance of updating the information. The extensive revisions in this edition reflect new guidelines for practice endorsed by professional organizations and/or the government. Each chapter has been updated with new references and each contains new management strategies. Throughout history, quality care before, during, and after childbirth has played an important role in reducing maternal and fetal death, preventing birth defects, and decreasing the incidence of other preventable health problems. Health care providers have a remarkable opportunity to provide health education, assessment, and early problem identification and management during the preconception and childbearing years. To help achieve these goals, this third edition presents the best available practice evidence for providing preconception, prenatal, and postpartum care in one easy-to-use publication. It is organized into four parts. Part I comprehensively covers preconception counseling and care, as well as the latest guidelines on screening for genetic disorders before and during pregnancy. Part II provides a wealth of information on key assessments, including laboratory and ultrasound diagnostics for the initial prenatal visit and for subsequent visits. Throughout the book, it presents topics using a problem-based schema that highlights history, physical examination, laboratory and diagnostic testing, differential diagnosis, management, indications for consultation and/or referral, and follow-up care. This format is particularly evident in Parts III and IV. The third edition has two new chapters to reflect emerging issues and other pertinent practice concerns based on our conversations with students and ambulatory obstetric providers.

This Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology (PAG) nurse triage book is the first of its kind because it will serve as a guide to assist nurses in efficiently addressing common patient concerns in this population. Nurses serve as the first line of communication with patients and families via telephone and computerized messaging and are required to triage a wide variety of gynecologic medical questions and concerns. This triage guide has been thoughtfully constructed to approach problems from the nursing perspective. It follows a targeted format that allows nurses to easily find and scan information on common concerns faced in this patient population. The conditions and treatment plans in this younger population differ from adult gynecologic patients, which highlight the importance of a specialized triage guide. This guidebook differs from all other nursing resources currently available because it is the first text to focus on the specialized field of PAG. It addresses a multitude of commonly asked PAG patient questions and chief complaints, including acute and chronic symptoms and commonly prescribed medication side effects and use instructions. This book assists decision-making for nurses as they approach triage concerns in this specialized patient population.

Written for clinicians, public health officials, women’s health experts, scientists, students, scholars, and other interested individuals, this book encompasses theoretical, research, policy, and clinical practice aspects of fertility and assisted reproductive technology (ART) healthcare. The book features the diverse contributions of multidisciplinary researchers, scholars, and clinicians from eight countries who explore contemporary health care perspectives regarding individuals and families dealing with infertility and fertility challenges including such advanced technologies as in-vitro fertilization (IVF), intrauterine insemination, and oocyte preservation. An electronic search of the literature from multiple disciplines yielded a large number of studies of psychosocial aspects of infertility. Early studies on the relationship between psychological factors and fertility, rather than reproductive function, generally focused on female personality characteristics and ambivalence for motherhood as the cause of medically unexplained infertility. Many investigators examining the effect of stressors on fertility focus on research participants’ survey responses regarding self-reported perceptions of stress and/or the number of stressful events an individual has experienced. Childlessness and infertility care are neglected aspects of family planning in resource-poor countries although the consequences of involuntary childlessness are much more dramatic and can create more wide-ranging societal problems compared with Western societies, particularly for women. By simplifying the diagnostic and IVF, laboratory procedures and by modifying the ovarian stimulation protocols for IVF, assisted reproductive techniques can be offered at affordable prices.

Now in its 12th edition, this authoritative resource continues to represent the gold standard for nursing management of common gynecological conditions for women throughout the lifespan. It includes contributions from prominent specialists focusing on specific areas of gynecological health, in addition to the vanguard contributions of three new lead authors with decades of experience in varied healthcare settings. The 12th edition is substantially updated with pivotal topics, current evidence-based practice guidelines, real-life case studies, and improved patient teaching materials that foster translation of information to practice. Clinical guidelines, appendices, and bibliographies are extensively revised to reflect the most current evidence-based information, research, and consensus from national health organizations. New PowerPoint slides and a transition guide for the 12th edition are included for ease of use in educational programs.

Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are a global health problem that can have lasting health effects. Nurses working with all populations need to have knowledge of the different STIs to develop an awareness of how the different STIs are transmitted as well as the different signs and symptoms and long-term health sequelae. In order to address STIs as a public health problem, nurses need to have a foundational knowledge of the different STIs so that early identification, treatment, and prevention can be addressed in a comprehensive manner. This book describes the different STIs, new and emerging health trends that are occurring, treatment options, and prevention efforts. A key issue addressed in the book is reviewing at-risk populations, who often are underserved and at the highest risk for long-term health consequences that can occur with STIs. This book brings an awareness of the impact of STIs and how nurses working with all populations can increase their knowledge of STIs and be instrumental in addressing a serious global health problem. It reviews common sexually transmitted infections in depth, providing epidemiology, risk factors, signs and symptoms, long-term sequelae, disease transmission, diagnosis, and recommended treatments. It also focuses on nursing-specific interventions that include conducting a sensitive and appropriate patient history, interpreting a holistic consideration of patient lifestyle, and linking population-specific patient education and counseling. The book provides expert guidance from an accomplished forensic nurse/nurse midwife. It addresses the most common STIs to facilitate accurate differential diagnosis and management. The book considers the needs of special populations to provide individualized, culturally sensitive care and offers evidence-based patient information, prevention, and counseling guidance to maximize positive public health outcomes.

This second edition of the bestselling acclaimed full-length practice test for the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Social Work Advanced Generalist Exam has been thoroughly updated to include additional test-taking strategies and diagnostic tests. Consisting of 170-questions that mirror the ASWB exam in length, structure, and content, this practice test is an indispensable tool for promoting exam success and includes strategies for every question along with in-depth rationales for correct answers, helping readers to discover gaps in their knowledge, identify strengths, and target weak areas. Despite social workers’ best efforts to study for and pass the ASWB examinations for licensure, they can encounter difficulties answering questions correctly that can ultimately lead to challenges in passing. On the ASWB examinations, social workers often struggle with application and reasoning questions which require them to take what has been learned and use it to identify correct answers given hypothetical contexts. Becoming more familiar with the construction of multiple-choice tests, as well as remembering concepts which are hallmarks within the social work profession, can greatly assist. In an effort to make this practice test as similar to the examination as possible, it contains 170 questions proportionately distributed within the four domains—Human Development, Diversity, and Behavior in the Environment (39 questions); Intervention Processes and Techniques for Use Across Systems (54 questions); Intervention Processes and Techniques for Use With Larger Systems (31 questions); and Professional Relationships, Values, and Ethics (46 questions). These proportions mirror the distribution of questions across these domains on the actual ASWB examination. This practice test is to be used as a diagnostic tool, so social workers should not worry about getting incorrect answers, but should view them as learning opportunities to avoid common pitfalls and pinpoint learning needs.