ACEP Reproductive Health Section Spotlight: Building Clarity, Confidence, and Evidence-Based Care for Pregnancy and Reproductive Emergencies

In this ACEP Early Career Physicians spotlight, Dr. Laurel Barr talks with Dr. Lauren Fine about the launch of ACEP’s Reproductive Health Section and why this work belongs squarely in emergency medicine. Their conversation focuses on practical ED realities: the patients who show up, the care decisions we already make, and the systems, training, and partnerships that help emergency physicians provide safe, patient-centered reproductive healthcare with confidence.

What the Section focuses on

The Reproductive Health Section treats reproductive health as core emergency department care, covering the conditions and decisions emergency physicians manage every day, including pregnancy of unknown location workups, ectopic pregnancy pathways, early pregnancy loss and miscarriage care, pregnancy related emergencies, contraception and emergency contraception conversations when appropriate, and STI screening and treatment. A key theme is defining that scope explicitly so this work is clearly recognized as ED work, not extra work, and so members can align around shared definitions, shared standards, and shared tools.

Why this matters in the ED right now

Right now, many patients with early pregnancy complications are showing up in the ED because timely outpatient care can be delayed, limited, or simply unavailable depending on where they live. At the same time, gaps in training plus a rapidly changing legal and policy landscape can make clinicians hesitate, and the section’s aim is to reduce that uncertainty with education, evidence based guidance, and a supportive community so emergency physicians can move from “I’m not sure” to “I can handle this.”

A priority area: early pregnancy loss care

Early pregnancy loss care is a clear next step and high impact focus for the section because it is common, time sensitive, and often managed in the ED, so improving physician confidence and workflows can benefit a large number of patients. The key message is that progress is not only about laws or headlines, but also about better training, greater clinical comfort, and practical care pathways that support decisive action, clear communication, and fewer delays.

Turning education into systems change

Work moves faster and reaches more people when it is organized, with the section serving as a shared “home” where emergency physicians can exchange protocols, tools, and effective practices instead of working in isolation. The section supports that through shared lectures and projects, live and recorded webinars, connections for building local workflows, and structured opportunities for advocacy and representation, all aimed at steady, collaborative progress rather than one-off efforts.

Practical resources and partner organizations mentioned

There are practical, ready-to-use resources from groups like Access Bridge, which offers structured training, mentorship, and clinical algorithms for topics like ectopic pregnancy and pregnancy of unknown location, and FeminEM/FeminM, which provides free CME modules and short ultrasound-focused teaching videos on ED-relevant reproductive health care. The larger message is that emergency physicians do not have to start from scratch, and the section helps members find, share, and implement tools that already work.

How to get involved

The Reproductive Health Section is action-oriented and member-driven, with opportunities to contribute through education, resource sharing, advocacy, and leadership. Members can get started by joining through their ACEP profile, attending live or recorded webinars, sharing local protocols or projects, and stepping into representation or leadership roles as opportunities open up.