Laura Hanks, MD, assistant professor in the Division of Academic Specialists in Obstetrics and Gynecology, joined WQOW for a recent story about an increase in patient requests for long-acting reversible contraception (LARCs) within the UW Health system.
In “Doctors see influx of requests for long-acting reversible contraception,” Hanks talked about recent contraceptive trends after the Dobbs Decision and the November 2024 presidential election.
"I will tell you that we all received an email within the first month after Trump was elected, asking if we would be willing to open up more clinic time to accommodate the huge influx of requests for lark and permanent sterilization.”
She also talked about how to effectively manage pain before and after an IUD insertion.
You can read the full article here.
**by Ob-Gyn Communications Intern Paige Stevenson
Laura Hanks, MD, assistant professor in the Division of Academic Specialists in Obstetrics and Gynecology, spoke with WKOW for a recent story about long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) and an increase in patients seeking this option.
In “Doctors see influx of requests for long-acting reversible contraception,” Hanks mentioned how LARCs and permanent sterilization rates have increased since the US Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision in 2022. A recent study found a 106% increase in permanent sterilization rates in the year after Dobbs.
While there is not current data on requests for LARCs or permanent sterilization since the November 2024 presidential election, Hanks shared anecdotal evidence of increased desire for these methods.
"I will tell you that we all received an email within the first month after Trump was elected, asking if we would be willing to open up more clinic time to accommodate the huge influx of requests for LARC and permanent sterilization.”
You can read the full article here.
**by Ob-Gyn Communications Intern Paige Stevenson
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists hosted the 2025 Congressional Leadership Conference in Washington, DC, March 9-11. This year’s conference theme was Ob-Gyns in Action: Turning Purpose into Policy, highlighting the ways ob-gyn experts can have a role in shaping health policy.
Many members of the UW Department of Ob-Gyn attended the conference to strengthen their advocacy skills and meet with Wisconsin legislators to discuss issues like rural obstetric care and policy impacts on Medicaid and Medicare.
Faculty:
- Amy Domeyer-Klenske, MD – Director, Division of Academic Specialists in Ob-Gyn
- Laura Hanks, MD – assistant professor, Division of ASOG
- Abigail Nelezen, MD – assistant professor, Division of ASOG
- Doug Laube, MD – emeritus faculty
Trainees:
- Taylor Badger, MD – PGY-1 resident
- Michelle DeMeo, MD – PGY-1 resident
- Jackie Powell, MD – Maternal-Fetal Medicine fellow
- Ben Pickus, MD - PGY-4 resident
- Margaret Williams, MD - PGY-4 resident
Medical Students:
- Laurie Lapp
- Kaitlyn Landry
Incredible work, all!
Laura Hanks, MD, assistant professor in the Division of Academic Specialists in Obstetrics and Gynecology joined the Cap Times for a story about local sterilization rates.
The Cap Times article “Sterilization rate at Madison hospital doubled after abortion ruling, study finds” shared data from a study co-authored by Hanks in the most recent issue of the Wisconsin Medical Journal. Hanks’s study found that surgical sterilization rates for pregnancy-capable patients at UnityPoint Health-Meriter Hospital rose 106% from 2016 to 2023. Hanks mentioned some of the reasons patients were interested in sterilization after the Dobbs decision:
“Hanks said more people are choosing surgical sterilization due to concerns that, should they become pregnant, access to abortion services could be restricted. She also said other forms of contraception aren’t 100% effective and might be unsuitable for all patients.”
You can read the full article here.
**by Ob-Gyn Communications Intern Paige Stevenson
UW Department of Ob-Gyn resident Jeannette Larson, MD, PGY-3, Laura Jacques, MD, associate professor in the Division of Academic Specialists in Ob-Gyn, and Laura Hanks, MD, clinical assistant professor in the Division of Academic Specialists in Ob-Gyn, co-authored a new article published in the Wisconsin Medical Journal. Co-authors included Camille Phillips and Amy Godecker, PhD.
In “Sterilization Rates of Pregnancy-Capable People at a Single Institution in Wisconsin Before and After Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization,” the authors used retrospective cohort data to examine the rate of tubal sterilizations from 2016-2022 to the rates of sterilization from 2022-2023, the first year after the Dobbs decision.
“There was an increase in the rate of interval sterilization procedures for pregnancy-capable people – particularly among younger and nulliparous patients – at a single academic institution in Wisconsin in the year following the Dobbs decision.”
Read the full article here.
**by Ob-Gyn Communications Intern Paige Stevenson
Members of the UW Department of Ob-Gyn attended the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) Districts I, V, and VI Annual District Meeting in Boston September 27-29, 2024. Read on for just a few of their wonderful accomplishments at the meeting!
Ob-Gyn resident Ben Pickus, MD, PGY-4, and Laura Hanks, MD, assistant professor in the Division of Academic Specialists in Ob-Gyn, presented the poster “Improving Access to Gender-Affirming Hysterectomy: A Quality Improvement Effort” during the conference.
Amy Domeyer-Klenske, MD, director of the Division of Academic Specialists in Ob-Gyn, spoke on the panel “Sharing your Voice through Op-Ed Writing”. During the conference, she also completed her multi-year term as chair of the ACOG Wisconsin Section.
Congratulations to all who attended and participated in the ACOG District VI Annual Meeting!
On September 19, 2024, Laura Hanks, MD, clinical assistant professor in the Division of Academic Specialists in Ob-Gyn, presented the Grand Rounds lecture “A Century of Sex, Science, and Gender.”
In the lecture, Hanks examined the history of gender-affirming care. She analyzed two perspectives — one on the patient side and one on the doctor’s side — in order to assess how the media has changed its reporting around sex and gender throughout time, and advocacy for gender-affirming care.
You can watch the whole lecture here.
Every summer, Shapiro Summer Research students collaborate with UW Department of Ob-Gyn faculty on research projects. On August 1, the 2024 Shapiro Summer Research students presented their projects during Ob-Gyn Grand Rounds.
Presenters, mentors, and projects were:
Michelle Lin, mentored by Kara Hoppe, DO, MS: The Effects of the Dobbs Decision on Sterilization Rates Based on Location Across Wisconsin
Madison Seifer, mentored by Laura Hanks, MD: Postoperative complications following gender-affirming hysterectomies
Srishi Gupta, mentored by Kara Hoppe, DO, MS: Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitoring in Young Adult Women With and Without a History of Hypertension in Pregnancy
Estelle Ndukwe, mentored by Abigail Cutler, MD, MPH: Referrals in Abortion Care
Alexandra Sabgir, mentored by Bala Bhagavath, MD: Pelvic Infection after Egg Retrieval in Patients with Endometriosis
Watch all the presentations here.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists hosted the 2024 Congressional Leadership Conference in Washington, DC, March 3-5. Many members of the UW Department of Ob-Gyn attended the conference to strengthen their advocacy skills and meet with Wisconsin legislators to discuss issues like Medicare payment and improving maternal mortality. - Amy Domeyer-Klenske, MD – Division of ASOG Director and associate professor
- Laura Hanks, MD – assistant professor, Division of ASOG
- Carley Zeal, MD – assistant professor, Division of ASOG
- Katie O’Brien, MD – soon-to-be assistant professor, Division of ASOG
- Doug Laube, MD – emeritus faculty
- Jackie Powell, MD – Maternal-Fetal Medicine fellow
- Ben Pickus, MD - PGY-3 resident
- Margaret Williams, MD - PGY-3 resident
- Laurie Lapp
- Kaitlyn Landry
The Wisconsin Section of ACOG also won the State Legislative Advocacy Award during the conference. Congratulations, all!
Laura Hanks, MD, clinical assistant professor in the Division of Academic Specialists in Obstetrics and Gynecology, shared her experiences traveling to Gambia on the UW School of Medicine and Public Health Department of Surgery’s Global Surgery website. Hanks was a visiting lecturer at the Edward Francis Teaching Hospital in March of 2024.
In “In My Own Words: Dr. Hanks’ trip to Gambia,” Hanks describes what it was like serving as a mentor for UW Ob-Gyn global health resident Awa Sanneh, MD, PGY-4, and acting as a guest lecturer in Banjul, Gambia. Many of her lectures focused on quality improvement projects regarding postpartum hemorrhage and C-section rates.
“Overall, this trip was filled with a lot of great experiences. In addition to my observation with Dr. Sanneh, we met many doctors in various surgical specialties while we were there. I am hopeful that these connections will be important for creating future partnerships.”
Read the whole blog post here.
**by Ob-Gyn Communications Intern Paige Stevenson
Congratulations to Camille Phillips, UW School of Medicine and Public Health medical student and mentee of Laura Hanks, MD, assistant professor in the Division of Academic Specialists in Ob-Gyn! Phillips received the Excellence in Student Research award at the 22nd Annual Medical Student Research Forum on Nov 20, 2023.
Forty students were competitively selected to present their research with a podium talk in four concurrent sessions, with each session selecting a winner.
Camille presented “Sterilizations Rates of Pregnancy Capable People at a Single Institution in Wisconsin Before and After the Dobbs Decision”, co-authored by Jeanette Larson, MD, PGY-2, Amy Godecker, PhD, and Laura Hanks, MD. Camille did a fantastic job and her talk was scored highest in her session by faculty, students, and staff in attendance! She wins a $500 award and her achievement will be listed in the booklet of awards that MD Student Services prepares each spring.
Camille’s project was funded by the Shapiro Summer Research Program and the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. Incredible work, Camille!
Every summer, Shapiro Summer Research students collaborate with UW Department of Ob-Gyn faculty on research projects. On August 3, the 2023 Shapiro Summer Research students presented their projects during Ob-Gyn Grand Rounds.
Presenters, mentors, and projects were:
Camille Phillips, mentored by Laura Hanks, MD - “Sterilizations Rates of Pregnancy Capable People at a Single Institution in Wisconsin Before and After the Dobbs Decision”
Amy Tran, mentored by Jon Pennycuff, MD, MSPH - “Pelvic Floor Symptom Burden and Treatment Choices for Rural versus Urban Dwelling Women”
Lindsey Christianson, mentored by Laura Jacques, MD - “How is the Dobbs Decision Impacting Decision-Making and Perceived Training Options for Ob-Gyn Residency Applicants?”
Sami Stroebel, mentored by Laura Cooney, MD - “Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSD) & Time to Pregnancy”
Doua Chee Xiong, mentored by Laura Bozzuto, MD - “Optimizing Care for Patients with Granulomatous Mastitis”
Watch all the presentations here.
Huge congratulations to Camille Phillips, UW School of Medicine and Public Health medical student and mentee of Laura Hanks, MD, assistant professor in the Division of Academic Specialists in Ob-Gyn! Phillips earned the Junior Fellow Prize Paper at the ACOG District VI Meeting in early October 2023.
Phillips presented the paper “Sterilizations Rates of Pregnancy Capable People at a Single Institution in Wisconsin Before and After the Dobbs Decision” at the meeting in Omaha, Nebraska. Jeanette Larson, MD, PGY-2, Amy Godecker, PhD, and Laura Hanks, MD, co-authored the paper, which shared data from a retrospective chart review:
“The June 2022 Dobbs vs. Jackson decision extremely restricted abortion care in Wisconsin, leading to uncertainty about how patients would respond to limitations on their reproductive freedom and bodily autonomy. Anecdotal data suggested that more patients were seeking permanent sterilization in direct response to the decision. Our presentation provides a summary of our retrospective chart review of all patients that received sterilizations at a single hospital in Wisconsin before and after the Dobbs decision. We will analyze what patient populations are receiving sterilizations post-Dobbs, and discuss what these trends mean for reproductive health care in an abortion-restricted state.”
Incredible work, Camille!
Sincere congratulations to Laura Hanks, MD, assistant professor in the UW Ob-Gyn Division of Academic Specialists in Ob-Gyn! We are proud to share that Hanks passed her ABOG board exams.
Hanks joined our department faculty in May 2022. Incredible work, Dr. Hanks!
On a recent episode of the Women’s Healthcast, Laura Hanks, MD, assistant professor in the UW Ob-Gyn Division of Academic Specialists in Ob-Gyn, discussed different ways surgery can be performed, with a focus on robotic-assisted surgery.
In the episode, Hanks talked about how robotic surgery works, what kinds of procedures in the ob-gyn world can and can’t be performed with this method, and how people can weigh the risks and benefits when deciding whether robotic-assisted surgery is right for them.
Listen to Robotic-Assisted Surgery now.
Did you know the Women’s Healthcast is available on all your favorite podcast platforms? Whether you like to listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Podbean, or anywhere else, you can find us! (Just search Women’s Healthcast, and while you’re at it, may as well subscribe!)
Since the spring of 2022, ob-gyn clinics around the U.S. have reported an increase in questions about tubal ligation, also known as surgical sterilization or salpingectomy. On a recent episode of the Women’s Healthcast, Laura Hanks, MD, assistant professor in the UW Ob-Gyn Division of Academic Specialists in Ob-Gyn, talked about why those requests are up, and answered questions about surgical sterilization: what happens during the procedure, why people might be interested in permanent birth control, and how she helps patients make sure sterilization is right for them.
Listen to Surgical Sterilization now.
Did you know the Women’s Healthcast is available on all your favorite podcast platforms? Whether you like to listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Podbean, or anywhere else, you can find us! (Just search Women’s Healthcast, and while you’re at it, may as well subscribe!)
