The March of Dimes preconception curriculum is designed for physicians who provide health care to women who can become pregnant.
Because of the high rate of unintended pregnancy in the United States, all women who can become pregnant need to receive preconception information.
- Half of all pregnancies in the United States are unplanned.
- For women under 20 years of age, 70 percent of pregnancies are unintended.
Preconception information enables women to benefit from:
- Consuming folic acid daily
- Achieving optimal weight
- Ensuring that immunizations are up to date
- Addressing substance abuse issues: smoking, alcohol, illegal drugs
- Optimally managing chronic conditions
- Receiving education about exposures to avoid: environmental hazards, some prescription or over-the-counter drugs, herbal supplements
The curriculum consists of a series of PowerPoint slide sets: a core module, which should be viewed first, and a separate module for each of the following four medical specialties:
- Obstetrics/gynecology
- Internal medicine
- Family medicine
- Pediatrics
Presentation notes are included.
This educational tool can be used as the foundation for teaching presentations for residents, fellows, nurses and primary care practitioners in clinical conferences, didactic sessions or grand rounds. It also can be used for independent study, although it was not designed for that purpose.
Download PowerPoint Slides:
The March of Dimes preconception curriculum was developed by a multidisciplinary team of faculty from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine/Montefiore Medical Center. It was funded by the Greater New York Chapter of the March of Dimes in 1997.
The development team was led by Cynthia Chazotte, MD (obstetrics/gynecology) and included:
- Ellen Harrison, MD (internal medicine)
- Peter Bernstein, MD (obstetrics/gynecology)
- Sophie Balk, MD (pediatrics); Robert Koppel, MD (pediatrics)
- Leena Shah, MD (obstetrics/gynecology)
- Nancy Devore, CNM, MS (obstetrics/gynecology, family medicine)
- Margaret Freda, RN, EdD (obstetrics/gynecology, education)
- Karla Damus, RN, PhD (obstetrics/gynecology, epidemiology).
The core module and the specialty modules for obstetrics/gynecology, internal medicine and pediatrics were piloted in four sites in 1998. Participants completed pre- and post-test evaluations during the pilot lectures. In addition, national leaders in obstetrics/gynecology, internal medicine, family medicine and pediatrics reviewed the curriculum. The material was then revised based upon the evaluation data.
The curriculum has been presented at the following national meetings:
- Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics/Council on Residency Education in Obstetrics and Gynecology, March 2000. Oral presentation by Cynthia Chazotte, MD.
- Society of General Internal Medicine, spring 2000. Workshop presentation by Ellen Harrison, MD.
- Ambulatory General Pediatric Association Education Committee, May 2000. Poster presentation by Robert Koppel, MD, and Sophie Balk, MD.
Related Publications
Chazotte C, Freda MC. Collaboration among four medicine specialties to develop a curriculum on preconception health. Acad Med May 2001; 76(5):522-3.
Freda MC, Chazotte C, Bernstein P et al. Interdisciplinary development of a preconception health curriculum for four medical specialties. Obstet Gynecol Feb 2002; 99(2):301-6.
Information and Feedback
For more information about the curriculum, contact:
Office of the Medical Director
March of Dimes
1275 Mamaroneck Avenue
White Plains, NY 10605
Phone: (914) 997-4649
e-mail: medicaldirector@marchofdimes.com
We thank you for your interest in the preconception curriculum and hope it will be useful in your important daily work to enhance the health of women and their families. Regardless of how you use the curriculum, the March of Dimes requests your feedback, which will help us refine the curriculum to meet your needs and the needs of other health care providers.
To obtain a brief evaluation questionnaire about the curriculum, e-mail us at medicaldirector@marchofdimes.com or call (914) 997-4496.
