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Cassy Cooke
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Issues·By Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN
Organization to launch restorative reproductive medicine telehealth program
The Guiding Star Project, a national women's health center network, is launching a telehealth pilot in its founding state of Minnesota, with plans for national expansion over time.
With telehealth to access abortion on the rise nationally, the Guiding Star Project’s telehealth lead nurse practitioner Laura Ducote spoke to Live Action News via Zoom about why the time is now to ensure that authentic women’s healthcare is available in every zip code, plus the connection between restorative reproductive medicine telehealth and ending abortion.
The Guiding Star Project's telehealth lead nurse practitioner discussed in an interview with Live Action News how the women's health center network is launching a telehealth pilot with plans to expand to multiple states over time.
Across their six centers nationally, the Guiding Star Project serves approximately 5,000 women.
The organization's telehealth pilot program will involve virtual education, virtual lactation consults, and virtual FEMM cycle education classes.
Some examples of the many types of patients for whom telehealth could be a great fit include women in their mid-twenties struggling with PCOS and irregular or absent periods, teen girls experiencing heavy periods, and women entering perimenopause.
Ducote observed:
“Restorative reproductive medicine is becoming more well-known, but there are still a good number of areas that are underserved in having access to that type of care. That’s a huge element of why we want to bring telehealth through the Guiding Star Project [GSP].
The other part is that at some point GSP would like to have a physical center in every state and so that allows us to bring in this additional telehealth support and another layer of service to multiple centers if that kind of expansion becomes a reality.”
Across their six centers nationally, the Guiding Star Project serves approximately 5,000 women. GSP’s goal is to “max out” nurse practitioner Laura Ducote’s patient volume and then to hire additional healthcare clinicians to support the growing need.
Ducote broke down the four aspects of Guiding Star Project’s virtual offerings, noting that the telehelath pilot involves:
Virtual education: "I’m launching women’s health talks every month, and they’re open to anyone," said Ducote. "This is an educational piece that we want to bring to every woman that doesn’t have access [to RRM] locally, teaching them to advocate for themselves with their local providers.”
Virtual lactation consults: Ducote said these will be "available nationally with Leah Jacobson, IBCLC and Founder of the Guiding Star Project.
Virtual FEMM cycle education classes: "Women understanding their cycle is critical to a restorative approach to women’s healthcare,” noted Ducote.
She also noted that “the telemedicine visits [are] provided via a HIPAA-compliant virtual platform [and] involve thorough history and medical record review, ordering of appropriate diagnostic testing, and an individualized treatment plan that could include medications, supplements, and/or lifestyle recommendations."
Ducote says Guiding Star is initiating telemedicine visits in Minnesota, but the goal is to "expand to the other states where we have physical Guiding Star locations, in Florida, Iowa, and Texas.”
Ducote is a family medicine nurse practitioner with training in both the Creighton Method and NaProTECHNOLOGY and FEMM. She specializes in addressing the hormonal aspect of common reproductive concerns like endometriosis, PCOS, painful periods, infertility, miscarriage, perimenopause, and more.
She can see female patients starting in early adolescence, as young as age nine, all the way through menopause. She explained that most any gynecological issue a woman could bring to her OB/GYN could be addressed via telehealth, with the obvious limitation that while Ducote can order blood draws or ultrasounds performed local to the patient, a relationship with a local practitioner would still be necessary for occasional in-person exams like pap smears, STD testing, or yeast infection evaluations.
Ducote shared several examples of the many types of patients for whom telehealth could be a great fit, like a woman in her mid-twenties struggling with PCOS and irregular or absent periods.
Such a woman would be encouraged to learn the evidence-based cycle charting method of her choice, which Ducote identified as “a unique piece about GSP, because there are a decent number of clinics that are very specific with the methods that their patients receive. Cycle education is a piece that we can provide, but the goal is to be able to assess the underlying issue of the PCOS. This can include treating high androgens or insulin resistance, helping restore regularity to her cycles, getting her hormones balanced, hopefully even before she’s trying to conceive, and potentially saving her trouble getting pregnant if desired later on.”
Once a woman has conceived, Ducote would offer both estrogen and progesterone monitoring as well as a full thyroid evaluation to help ensure a strong hormonal start to the pregnancy.
As another example, Ducote could see a teen girl experiencing heavy periods, evaluating the underlying cause rather than Band-Aiding with hormonal birth control.
Ducote would assess for iron-deficiency anemia, a real possibility for girls and women with abnormally heavy periods. Since the top three reasons for heavy periods, in Ducote’s experience, include insulin resistance, thyroid issues, or high prolactin levels, other aspects of care would include “as much lifestyle change as possible in supporting that underlying cause” with nutritional, supplement, exercise, and – potentially – medication as treatment options, along with general puberty education.
Ducote also cares for women on the other end of the reproductive lifespan, especially educating women entering perimenopause on expected changes vs. red flags, and then prescribing medication support like hormone replacement therapy, when appropriate, for symptom management.
Ducote explained the connection between authentic women’s healthcare delivered via telehealth and creating a culture of life, stipulating:
“If we do not make the experience that all women are having for pregnancy, their birth, and their motherhood better, we will never eliminate the desire for abortion. Even women that desire pregnancy, that are even really looking forward to motherhood, that have good husbands, that have good support – if even they don’t have excellent care, how are we going to convince a woman that doesn’t have great support or didn’t really want to get pregnant, how are we going to create a culture of life, where having a baby something that women really desire?”
If we’re improving birth outcomes, if we’re improving the hormonal balance of the woman – potentially even early on – we can affect her pregnancy and motherhood, because we really are the best versions of ourselves when our hormones are balanced. If we’re well and we’re enjoying our motherhood, that can have a real impact on women’s desire for pregnancy, rather than them asking, ‘why in the world would I do that to myself?’”
Increasing access to restorative reproductive medicine also works to eliminate the moral dilemma and “selective reduction” abortions caused by the IVF approach to infertility. RRM provides a life-affirming route for couples to receive answers and treatment regarding their infertility or recurrent miscarriage that can affect their lifelong health.
RRM allows them to naturally conceive in a way that honors their dignity and marriage without bypassing or suppressing their bodies’ natural design.
For the Guiding Star Project, creating a culture of life starts early, beginning with puberty education about how fertility is a gift and the menstrual cycle is a fifth vital sign of whole-body female health.
Young girls who internalize the goodness of their female design and develop body literacy carry that knowledge and respect for their bodies forward throughout life, quietly informing their expectations for healthy relationships, decisions about when to have sex, whether to go on birth control, and more.
While, telehealth services are currently available solely to Minnesota residents, women in other states are encouraged to fill out the ‘Request Care in My State’ form to get on the waitlist for updates as the pilot expands.. To see all available services, click here. GSP operates on a cash pay model and all prices are listed clearly, with an option to book a free 20-minute clarity call beforehand.
Live Action News is pro-life news and commentary from a pro-life perspective.
Our work is possible because of our donors. Please consider giving to further our work of changing hearts and minds on issues of life and human dignity.
Contact editor@liveaction.org for questions, corrections, or if you are seeking permission to reprint any Live Action News content.
Guest Articles: To submit a guest article to Live Action News, email editor@liveaction.org with an attached Word document of 800-1000 words. Please also attach any photos relevant to your submission if applicable. If your submission is accepted for publication, you will be notified within three weeks. Guest articles are not compensated (see our Open License Agreement). Thank you for your interest in Live Action News!
Cassy Cooke
·
Issues
Sheena Rodriguez
·
Politics
Bernadette Pate
·
Human Interest
Nancy Flanders
·
Analysis
Cassy Cooke
·
Issues
Nancy Flanders
·
Issues
Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN
·
Issues
Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN
·
Opinion
Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN
·
Human Interest
Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN
·
Analysis
Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN
·Issues·By Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN
Organization to launch restorative reproductive medicine telehealth program
The Guiding Star Project, a national women's health center network, is launching a telehealth pilot in its founding state of Minnesota, with plans for national expansion over time.
With telehealth to access abortion on the rise nationally, the Guiding Star Project’s telehealth lead nurse practitioner Laura Ducote spoke to Live Action News via Zoom about why the time is now to ensure that authentic women’s healthcare is available in every zip code, plus the connection between restorative reproductive medicine telehealth and ending abortion.
The Guiding Star Project's telehealth lead nurse practitioner discussed in an interview with Live Action News how the women's health center network is launching a telehealth pilot with plans to expand to multiple states over time.
Across their six centers nationally, the Guiding Star Project serves approximately 5,000 women.
The organization's telehealth pilot program will involve virtual education, virtual lactation consults, and virtual FEMM cycle education classes.
Some examples of the many types of patients for whom telehealth could be a great fit include women in their mid-twenties struggling with PCOS and irregular or absent periods, teen girls experiencing heavy periods, and women entering perimenopause.
Ducote observed:
“Restorative reproductive medicine is becoming more well-known, but there are still a good number of areas that are underserved in having access to that type of care. That’s a huge element of why we want to bring telehealth through the Guiding Star Project [GSP].
The other part is that at some point GSP would like to have a physical center in every state and so that allows us to bring in this additional telehealth support and another layer of service to multiple centers if that kind of expansion becomes a reality.”
Across their six centers nationally, the Guiding Star Project serves approximately 5,000 women. GSP’s goal is to “max out” nurse practitioner Laura Ducote’s patient volume and then to hire additional healthcare clinicians to support the growing need.
Ducote broke down the four aspects of Guiding Star Project’s virtual offerings, noting that the telehelath pilot involves:
Virtual education: "I’m launching women’s health talks every month, and they’re open to anyone," said Ducote. "This is an educational piece that we want to bring to every woman that doesn’t have access [to RRM] locally, teaching them to advocate for themselves with their local providers.”
Virtual lactation consults: Ducote said these will be "available nationally with Leah Jacobson, IBCLC and Founder of the Guiding Star Project.
Virtual FEMM cycle education classes: "Women understanding their cycle is critical to a restorative approach to women’s healthcare,” noted Ducote.
She also noted that “the telemedicine visits [are] provided via a HIPAA-compliant virtual platform [and] involve thorough history and medical record review, ordering of appropriate diagnostic testing, and an individualized treatment plan that could include medications, supplements, and/or lifestyle recommendations."
Ducote says Guiding Star is initiating telemedicine visits in Minnesota, but the goal is to "expand to the other states where we have physical Guiding Star locations, in Florida, Iowa, and Texas.”
Ducote is a family medicine nurse practitioner with training in both the Creighton Method and NaProTECHNOLOGY and FEMM. She specializes in addressing the hormonal aspect of common reproductive concerns like endometriosis, PCOS, painful periods, infertility, miscarriage, perimenopause, and more.
She can see female patients starting in early adolescence, as young as age nine, all the way through menopause. She explained that most any gynecological issue a woman could bring to her OB/GYN could be addressed via telehealth, with the obvious limitation that while Ducote can order blood draws or ultrasounds performed local to the patient, a relationship with a local practitioner would still be necessary for occasional in-person exams like pap smears, STD testing, or yeast infection evaluations.
Ducote shared several examples of the many types of patients for whom telehealth could be a great fit, like a woman in her mid-twenties struggling with PCOS and irregular or absent periods.
Such a woman would be encouraged to learn the evidence-based cycle charting method of her choice, which Ducote identified as “a unique piece about GSP, because there are a decent number of clinics that are very specific with the methods that their patients receive. Cycle education is a piece that we can provide, but the goal is to be able to assess the underlying issue of the PCOS. This can include treating high androgens or insulin resistance, helping restore regularity to her cycles, getting her hormones balanced, hopefully even before she’s trying to conceive, and potentially saving her trouble getting pregnant if desired later on.”
Once a woman has conceived, Ducote would offer both estrogen and progesterone monitoring as well as a full thyroid evaluation to help ensure a strong hormonal start to the pregnancy.
As another example, Ducote could see a teen girl experiencing heavy periods, evaluating the underlying cause rather than Band-Aiding with hormonal birth control.
Ducote would assess for iron-deficiency anemia, a real possibility for girls and women with abnormally heavy periods. Since the top three reasons for heavy periods, in Ducote’s experience, include insulin resistance, thyroid issues, or high prolactin levels, other aspects of care would include “as much lifestyle change as possible in supporting that underlying cause” with nutritional, supplement, exercise, and – potentially – medication as treatment options, along with general puberty education.
Ducote also cares for women on the other end of the reproductive lifespan, especially educating women entering perimenopause on expected changes vs. red flags, and then prescribing medication support like hormone replacement therapy, when appropriate, for symptom management.
Ducote explained the connection between authentic women’s healthcare delivered via telehealth and creating a culture of life, stipulating:
“If we do not make the experience that all women are having for pregnancy, their birth, and their motherhood better, we will never eliminate the desire for abortion. Even women that desire pregnancy, that are even really looking forward to motherhood, that have good husbands, that have good support – if even they don’t have excellent care, how are we going to convince a woman that doesn’t have great support or didn’t really want to get pregnant, how are we going to create a culture of life, where having a baby something that women really desire?”
If we’re improving birth outcomes, if we’re improving the hormonal balance of the woman – potentially even early on – we can affect her pregnancy and motherhood, because we really are the best versions of ourselves when our hormones are balanced. If we’re well and we’re enjoying our motherhood, that can have a real impact on women’s desire for pregnancy, rather than them asking, ‘why in the world would I do that to myself?’”
Increasing access to restorative reproductive medicine also works to eliminate the moral dilemma and “selective reduction” abortions caused by the IVF approach to infertility. RRM provides a life-affirming route for couples to receive answers and treatment regarding their infertility or recurrent miscarriage that can affect their lifelong health.
RRM allows them to naturally conceive in a way that honors their dignity and marriage without bypassing or suppressing their bodies’ natural design.
For the Guiding Star Project, creating a culture of life starts early, beginning with puberty education about how fertility is a gift and the menstrual cycle is a fifth vital sign of whole-body female health.
Young girls who internalize the goodness of their female design and develop body literacy carry that knowledge and respect for their bodies forward throughout life, quietly informing their expectations for healthy relationships, decisions about when to have sex, whether to go on birth control, and more.
While, telehealth services are currently available solely to Minnesota residents, women in other states are encouraged to fill out the ‘Request Care in My State’ form to get on the waitlist for updates as the pilot expands.. To see all available services, click here. GSP operates on a cash pay model and all prices are listed clearly, with an option to book a free 20-minute clarity call beforehand.
Live Action News is pro-life news and commentary from a pro-life perspective.
Our work is possible because of our donors. Please consider giving to further our work of changing hearts and minds on issues of life and human dignity.
Contact editor@liveaction.org for questions, corrections, or if you are seeking permission to reprint any Live Action News content.
Guest Articles: To submit a guest article to Live Action News, email editor@liveaction.org with an attached Word document of 800-1000 words. Please also attach any photos relevant to your submission if applicable. If your submission is accepted for publication, you will be notified within three weeks. Guest articles are not compensated (see our Open License Agreement). Thank you for your interest in Live Action News!
Cassy Cooke
·Issues
Sheena Rodriguez
·Politics
Bernadette Pate
·Human Interest
Nancy Flanders
·Analysis
Cassy Cooke
·Issues
Nancy Flanders
·Issues
Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN
·Issues
Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN
·Opinion
Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN
·Human Interest
Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN
·Analysis
Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN
·