FACTS Medical School Elective: Transforming Medical Students' Perceptions of the Effectiveness of FABMs

Fertility Awareness-Based Methods (FABMs) are natural systems which help women gain knowledge of their fertility patterns through observation of biomarkers like cervical mucus, basal body temperature, and urinary hormone levels. FABMs have been scientifically proven as an effective means of achieving or preventing pregnancy [1]. Unfortunately, FABMs are often misrepresented or not even addressed in medical school curriculums. In an evaluation of reproductive health curricula from 20 US medical schools from 2016-2019, FABMs only comprised about 4% of all family planning mentions [2]. After participating in the FACTS Elective, medical students are significantly more likely to perceive FABMs as effective for avoiding or achieving pregnancy. Students are significantly more likely to either “somewhat” or “almost certainly” offer FABMs to their future patients for family planning. Creighton, Billings, Marquette, STM, FEMM, LAM and NeoFertility were the FABMs that students were mostly likely to offer. Participating in the FACTS elective equips medical students to seek additional training in these methods and may empower them to spark conversations with their medical schools to include FABMs in the curricula.