IUDs Can Be Practical for Teenagers, but Pediatricians May Lack Training in their Use

Washington Post

Mandy Coles, MD, MPH, pediatrics

When Wendy Swanson started out as a pediatrician eight years ago, it never crossed her mind to bring up the option of intrauterine devices — an insertable form of long-acting contraception — when she had her regular birth-control discussions with teenage patients who were sexually active.

Expert quote:

But it’s hard to know when or how this might happen, said Mandy Coles, a co-author of the JAMA editorial and an adolescent medicine physician and assistant professor of pediatrics at Boston University School of Medicine.

“The bottom line is this is going to take more time and advocacy and research to improve training,” she said.

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