AAFP--ACOG Joint Statement on Cooperative Practice and Hospital Privileges

Statement of Policy 091, May 2015

Advocacy on behalf of women’s health is central to our mission. The United States Congress and Statehouses are increasingly affecting the practice of medicine, our specialty’s ability to care for our patients, and the future of women’s health. The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists supports member involvement in legislative and political advocacy to help ensure that lawmakers and government entities make informed decisions on issues related to women’s health.

AAFP--ACOG Joint Statement on Cooperative Practice and Hospital Privileges

The health and economic benefits of paid parental leave are well documented. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) endorses paid parental leave as essential. Paid parental leave includes maintenance of full benefits and 100% of pay for at least six weeks. Those who choose to have children should not face discrimination, and discrimination on the basis of pregnancy is explicitly prohibited. (1, 2) Workers who choose to have children make an equal commitment to the workplace and training environment as those who do not. Workers eligible for paid parental leave include ...

AAFP--ACOG Joint Statement on Cooperative Practice and Hospital Privileges

(Reaffirmed July 2014)

Access to maternity care is an important public health concern in the United States. Providing comprehensive perinatal services to a diverse population requires a cooperative relationship among a variety of health professionals, including social workers, health educators, nurses and physicians. Prenatal care, labor and delivery, and postpartum care have historically been provided by midwives, family physicians and obstetricians. All three remain the major caregivers today. A cooperative and collaborative relationship among obstetricians, family physicians and nurse midwives is essential for p...

Certification and Procedural Credentialing

(Approved by the Executive Board February 2008, Revised and Approved July 2012)

Resident training in obstetrics and gynecology incorporates the full spectrum of obstetric and gynecologic practice as defined in the special requirements promulgated by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). These include diagnostic, therapeutic and operative procedures used in the practice of the specialty. The certification process of the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology Inc. (ABOG) evaluates medical knowledge and patient care skills of individual practitioners in the broad range of obstetrics, gynecology and women’s health care. The Maintenance of Cer...

Midwifery Education and Certification

Statement of Policy (Amended and Reaffirmed July 2014), July 2014

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (the College) is the representative organization of physicians who are qualified specialists in providing health services to women. The College is committed to facilitating access to women’s health care that is both safe and high quality. One method of attaining this goal is to assure that providers of care meet educational and professional standards of a certification process. The College recognizes the educational and professional standards currently used by the American Midwifery Certification Board (AMCB) to evaluate and certify midw...

Racial Bias

(Approved February 2017)

There is a growing body of literature that validates the public health impact of racial bias, implicit and explicit, on the lives and health of people of color. As women’s health care physicians, obstetrician-gynecologists (ob-gyns) must work to clearly understand the impact of racial bias and how it manifests in our lives and in the lives of our patients. Racial bias is an issue that affects our patients, either directly by subjecting them or their families to inequitable treatment, or indirectly by creating a stressful and unhealthy environment. It is critical that physicians are aware of t...