Background

Inequitable outcomes in sexual and reproductive health disproportionately burden communities minoritized by systems of oppression. Although there is evidence linking structural determinants to these inequities, clinical learners have limited exposure to these topics in their training. We developed a curriculum aimed to teach clinical learners the structural determinants of sexual and reproductive health.

Method

We implemented Kern's six-step method for curriculum development. Through literature review, we identified structural competency as the foundational framework and explored community priorities for clinical training. We assessed learner needs regarding structural equity training, articulated goals and objectives, and chose video modules as the primary educational strategy. We collaboratively developed content with community scholars and reproductive justice advocates. For phase 1 of our curriculum, we created pillar videos with reflection questions, resources, and a visual glossary of key terms. All materials are available through an online educational platform offering open-access, evidence-based curricula.

Experience

We launched our curriculum with a social media campaign and presented our videos at several national convenings. We implemented videos with clinical learners with positive preliminary evaluation results.

Conclusion

With rigorous development rooted in community engagement, our curriculum contributes to the tools promoting structural equity training in obstetrics and gynecology.

Growing discourse around maternity care during the pandemic offers an opportunity to reflect on how this crisis has amplified inequities in health care. We argue that policies upholding the rights of birthing people, and policies decreasing the risk of COVID-19 transmission are not mutually exclusive. The explicit lack of standardization of evidence-based maternity care, whether expressed in clinical protocols or institutional policy, has disproportionately impacted marginalized communities. If these factors remain unexamined, then it would seem that equity is not the priority, but retaining power and control is. We advocate for a comprehensive understanding of how this pandemic has revealed our deepest failures.