Hospitals will now need written informed consent from patients before medical professionals and students practice pelvic exams on unconscious female patients, according to updated guidance from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

The practice of performing pelvic exams on unconscious patients, which is considered a standard part of medical training and legal in about 30 states, involves medical students entering an operating room under supervision and inserting two fingers into a female patient’s vagina to feel for abnormalities in the uterus and ovaries. Often, these patients are under anesthesia for an unrelated procedure and are unaware that medical students are practicing the procedure on their bodies, according to multiple studies and reports.

The guidance also includes “pelvic, breast, prostate, or rectal examinations” and expands the type of provider to include advanced practice providers like nurse practitioners and physician assistants.

Keep reading here.—AE

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A recent Supreme Court ruling in Alabama temporarily compromised access to in vitro fertilization (IVF) in the state, causing confusion among patients as well as employers and providers covering the treatment.

The current political landscape, marked by the Alabama ruling and the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022, is prompting employers at companies offering fertility benefits to evaluate this perk, according to most human resources (HR) professionals (81%) who were asked about the issue in a recent HR Brew/Harris Poll survey. But among that group, the majority of HR pros surveyed said their company is looking to expand their fertility benefits, rather than reduce them.

While fertility treatments remain a rare employer benefit, over three in five Americans surveyed (63%) said companies should offer them. HR professionals see fertility benefits as a vital tool for talent, as well as for engendering employee loyalty, according to those polled March 8–10.

Keep reading at HR Brew.—CV

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This week’s Making Rounds spotlights Carey Cook, an LGBTQ fertility coach who runs Embodied Pride, a North Carolina-based practice that guides queer couples through the childbirth process.

Cook focuses primarily on coaching queer families through the emotional complexities they may face when trying to conceive. Because that process frequently includes medical procedures a straight couple may not need to become pregnant, such as intrauterine insemination (IUI), where sperm reaches the uterus through a catheter, Cook’s work also centers on helping clients navigate the medical world.

Cook spoke about how queer and straight fertility may differ, social progress in how the public sees queer families, and the expanding array of options available to queer couples who want children.

Keep reading here.—WP

Do you work in healthcare or have information about the industry that we should know? Email Will at [email protected]. For confidential conversations, ask Will for his number on Signal.

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