The Well-Woman Visit

This accessible text expands on the recommendations of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists' Well Woman Task Force (WWTF) to provide a practical guide to conducting a successful well-woman visit. Background chapters summarize the history of the WWTF and rationale and evidence supporting periodic health visits, explain the principles of early diagnosis and prevention, and offer advice on the practical side of conducting a visit, including considerations for special populations. Chapters detail each component of the visit, first explaining the scope of a problem, the rationale for screening or prevention, and the factors that alter a screening. The WWTF recommendations are then summarized and advice is offered on how to apply them. Case studies and advice on how to identify and assess new guidelines are also provided, ensuring providers are well-equipped to offer efficient and effective care.

Introduction: David Chelmow, Anita Blanchard and Lee Learman; Part I. Background: 1. The well-woman task force Haywood L. Brown and Jeanne Conry; 2. Rationale for the well-woman visit Maureen G. Phipps; 3. Principles of early diagnosis and prevention Lee Learman; 4. Guidelines: deciding what belongs in a well-woman visit David Haas; 5. Promoting lifestyle modification and behaviour change in the context of shared decision making Michelle H. Moniz and Tony Ogburn; 6. Practical aspects of the well-woman visit Christopher M. Zahn; 7. Considerations for medically underserved populations Amy (Meg) Autry and Sara Whetstone; 8. Paying for the well-woman visit Michael S. Policar; Part II. Components of the Well-Woman Visit: Introduction. Components of the well woman visit at different life-stages; Section 1. Health Maintenance: 9. Immunizations Regan N. Theiler; 10. Visual acuity and glaucoma Melanie D. Altizer; 11. Hearing screening for the well-woman visit Efua Leke; 12. Oral hygiene and oral cavity examination C. Nathan Webb; 13. Injury prevention Aaron Goldberg; 14. Piercing and tattooing Margaret Boozer; 15. Abdominal and pelvic examination Hope Ricciotti; Section 2. Cardiovascular Health: 16. Dyslipidemia Sangini Sheth; 17. Hypertension Christine R. Isaacs; Section 3. Metabolic and Nutritional Health: 18. Diet and nutrition Margaret L. Dow; 19. Fitness and exercise Maureen E. Farrell; 20. Obesity Christopher M. Morosky; 21. The metabolic syndrome Nguyet Anh Nguyen; 22. Iron deficiency anemia Moune Jabre Raughley; 23. Osteoporosis Anitra Beasley; 24. Diabetes Janeen Arbuckle; 25. Hypothyroidism screening Bryan K. Rone; Section 4. Urinary Tract Assessment: 26. Kidney disease Julie Zemaitis DeCesare; 27. Bacteriuria Lauren E. Nelson; 28. Pelvic floor disorders Erica Nelson; Section 5. Contraception and Reproductive Health: 29. Contraception Rebecca Cohen; 30. Sexual health Brett Worly; Section 6. Infectious Diseases: 31. Hepatitis B and C screening Kimberly S. Gecsi 32. HIV Sarah Milton; 33. Sexually transmitted infections Kevin A. Ault; Section 7. Cancer Screening and Prevention: 34. Skin cancer Meghan L. Valentine; 35. Cervical cancer screening and prevention David Chelmow; 36. Colorectal cancer screening and prevention Marygrace Elson; 37. Ovarian cancer Beth Cronin; 38. Breast cancer screening and chemoprevention Eduardo Lara-Torre; 39. Genetic screening for cancer Vanessa H. Gregg; Section 8. Neurologic, Behavioural, and Psychosocial Health: 40. Depression Tiffany A. Moore Simas; 41. Domestic and intimate partner violence Kavita Shah Arora; 42. Alcohol misuse Monica Mendiola; 43. Screening for tobacco or nicotine use Sharon T. Phelan; 44. Drug use Michelle M. Isley; 45. Sleep disorders Lee Learman and David Chelmow; 46. Mental health and psychosocial issues: suicide and behavioural assessment Jonathan Schaffir; Section 9. Pregnancy: 47. Breastfeeding Andrea B. Joyner; 48. Neural tube defect prevention Jody Stonehocker; 49. Diabetes postpartum Shari M. Lawson; 50. Preconception/interconception care Dean V. Conrood; Index.

David Chelmow is Professor and Chair of Obstetrics and Gynecology (Ob/Gyn) at Virginia Commonwealth University and chairs the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) Practice Bulletins-Gynecology Committee. He is a past president of the Society for Academic Specialists in General Obstetrics and Gynecology and served on the ACOG Well Woman Task Force. He serves on the board of directors for the American Board of Ob/Gyn, the Council of University Chairs in Ob/Gyn, and the American Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology. He is the editor-in-chief of the Medscape Ob/Gyn Reference and the SASGOG/Foundation for Exxcellence in Women's Health Pearls of Exxcellence.
Anita Blanchard is a Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology (Ob/Gyn) at the University of Chicago Medical Center. She has served as the residency program director since 2004 and is committed to educating our next generation of outstanding health care providers. She serves on the board of directors for the American Board of Ob/Gyn and the Foundation for Exxcellence in Women's Health. She is on the residency review committee for Ob/Gyn for the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education.
Lee Learman is Professor and Senior Associate Dean for Graduate Medical Education and Academic Affairs and Florida Atlantic University. He is a former chair of the Council on Resident Education in Obstetrics and Gynecology, and a former member of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education Ob/Gyn residency review committee. He is currently president of the Society for Academic Specialists in General Obstetrics and Gynecology, and co-leader of the Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics (APGO) Academic Scholars and Leaders Program. He was lead and senior author of two clinical research publications in Obstetrics and Gynecology winning the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists' Roy M. Pitkin Award (2004, 2009) and in 2007 received the Established Investigator Award from the American Educational Research Association. He has a career-long interest in medical education, doctor-patient communication and epidemiology, and his clinical niche is chronic pelvic pain.