Virtual SIG Meetings
Wednesday, March 1, 2023, 3:00-4:00 p.m. EST
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Title: Ethics and Legal Issues SIG: A Discussion Space for Ethics and Advocacy in the Post-Roe Era
Session Leaders: Mary Ott, MD, MA, Indiana University; Abigail English, JD, Center for Adolescent Health and the Law, Sharon Enujioke MD, MPH, Uniformed Services University and the Naval Medical Center – Portsmouth.
Description: In the aftermath of the US Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade, abortion access in the US has been restricted in many locations; this may also be true in other countries. In this context, adolescent providers are confronting multiple ethical and legal challenges and experiencing moral distress. The Ethics and Legal Issues SIG provides space for conversations about providers’ experiences and ways forward. The following topics may spark ideas for dialogue.
- Ethics and reproductive rights advocacy. Sharing stores of using ethics and reproductive justice frameworks in advocacy at the patient, family, clinic, institution/organization, local, or national level.
- Conscientious provision of care. While refusal to provide care for conscientious reasons has long been discussed by ethicists, very little is said about conscientious provision of care. However, the overturning of Roe and the state laws that now restrict or ban abortion place adolescent providers in a difficult situation. What are the experiences of providers who want to provide care that meets professional and ethical standards of best practice are but are limited by state law? No adolescent provider will be unaffected, and we welcome experiences from both states with laws that support or deny young people’s basic reproductive rights.
- Limits to online privacy and confidentiality. In the post-Roe era, intense concerns have arisen about the implications of sensitive online information contained in EHRs, online platforms, and digital apps being accessed by law enforcement or opponents of abortion, placing patients, providers, and health care systems at potential legal risk.
Participants are encouraged to share experiences and events related to the Roe decision, and come ready to share ideas and actions in advocating for or protecting the reproductive rights of young people. Legal and ethics resources addressing these issues will be shared with SIG participants.
Advocacy SIG
Thursday, March 2, Noon-1:00 pm EST
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Session Leaders: Laura K Grubb (she/her/hers) MD MPH FAAP
Advocacy Special Interest Group is open to all participants interested in local, national, and global advocacy issues and strategies, with special emphasis on committees, other SIGs, and chapters’ participation and strategies to ensure adolescent and young adult (AYA) health and well-being in policy.
The SIG will update interested members on ongoing SAHM Advocacy activities. Our colleagues at the American Academy of Pediatrics will provide a brief overview of ongoing national and state legislative and advocacy issues. We will introduce our inaugural Senior Policy Fellow, Abigail English JD, who will discuss SAHM Advocacy priorities as well as opportunities for collaboration within and beyond SAHM to advance policies that promote the health and well-being of AYAs. We will also invite SIG participants to update us on their advocacy efforts and accomplishments. Additionally, participants will have the opportunity to engage in dialogue with members of SAHM’s advocacy committee in order to provide input into SAHM’s advocacy priorities for the upcoming year. Finally, we will discuss how SAHM members can participate or initiate SAHM advocacy projects as well as use national and local resources for their own advocacy work.
OBJECTIVES: At the end of this SIG, participants will be able to
1. Describe federal and state-specific legislation and policies affecting the health of adolescents and young adults
2. Identify SAHM’s priority adolescent health advocacy issues and positions
3. Familiarize participants with the avenues for advocacy collaborations and efforts in SAHM.
4. Share resources for engaging in advocacy work.
Revised 02/17/2023
