R&E: Improving Title X Services for People with Disabilities in Rural Communities
Project Description:
The Title X (ten) Program was created in 1970 to provide reproductive health to low-income individuals,
including contraception and health education. People with disabilities (PWD) access family planning and
sexual and reproductive health services at lower rates than people without disabilities and face numerous
barriers to obtaining care. These barriers are compounded for individuals living in rural and frontier
communities or who have mental health challenges, increased STIs, lower life expectancy, increased
HPV cancers and adolescent birth rates. The lack of accurate prevalence data on PWD in rural
communities accessing reproductive health limits effective programming to address these challenges. To
better estimate the needs of PWD accessing Title X services and develop strategies to improve care for
this community, this project will leverage an existing partnership between the Equality State Research
Network (ESRN; a community and practice based research network with expertise in disabilities) and the
Wyoming Health Council (WHC; the Title X Program for WY).
Objectives: Using Community-Based Participatory Research principles, we will pursue two aims, with all
partners serving as equal co-researchers at all steps of the process:
Aim 1) To conduct a card study with three Wyoming Title X clinics to estimate the prevalence of PWD
seeking reproductive care, determine the type of care sought, any major barriers to care, and referrals for
mental health care.
Aim 2) To use the Nominal Group Technique with our community partners to engage in a systematic
process with all stakeholders to achieve the following goals: 1) interpret the findings from the card study,
paying careful attention to how the findings can inform practice improvement including both system-wide
and clinic-based strategies for improving Title X care for PWD, 2) develop a quality improvement plan
based on the card study to increase provider capacity for PWD and increase access for this community,
3) develop a dissemination plan for other clinics and patients to promote access and 4) develop a
research plan to guide future competitive grant applications to build upon these findings.
Keyword(s):
Reproductive health, people with disabilities, rural access, CBPR
Core Function(s):
Performing Research or Evaluation
Area of Emphasis
Health-Related Activities
Target Audience:
Professionals and Para-Professionals
Unserved or Under-served Populations:
Geographic Areas, Rural/Remote
Primary Target Audience Geographic Descriptor:
State, National
COVID-19 Related Data:
N/A
