Educating Midwives as Abortion Providers: Implementing Innovative Models for Standardized Training in Abortion Care

The Dobbs v Jackson Women's Health Organization US Supreme Court decision significantly limited patients' access to abortion services, and the providers who can legally deliver this care. Currently 22 states license providers other than physicians to provide medication or procedural abortion. However, most midwives and advanced practice clinicians (APCs) do not receive abortion training in their educational programs despite endorsement from professional and health organizations both nationally and abroad. In response to the growing abortion access crisis, 4 accredited midwifery programs incorporated innovative abortion training into their curricula to integrate abortion into the full scope of midwifery practice. This article provides a framework for midwifery and APC programs to implement standardized education and training in abortion services that are trauma informed, culturally sensitive, and patient centered. We outline each program, implementation barriers and facilitators, and conclude with a discussion of mechanisms for overcoming barriers and recommendations for standardization across programs.