The WAKE organization (WAKE stands for Women Accessing Knowledge Empowerment) makes grants available to non-profits whose missions involve social justice. Nevada County Citizens for Choice (C4C) President Elaine Sierra successfully applied for one such WAKE/Tech2Empower grant. In her application, Elaine asked for assistance in using digital media to raise awareness of the Clinic’s new location in Grass Valley. The project paired corporate mentors who volunteered their time to work with a team representing C4C. These corporate mentors developed actionable solutions and offered expert advice. The team representing C4C included: Abigail Rangel, of Women’s Health Specialists; Erin McGhee, Citizens for Choice Board Secretary and Sierra College student, Emma Sheffo, CalPoly student; and Jocelyn McKinley, Bear River High School junior. Three corporate advisors were assigned to the team, two of whom came from Cendzyne, and one from Google.

The Tech2Empower project ran for six weeks, using Zoom for all meetings, starting with a kick-off meeting February 24 and a wrap-up meeting April 8 for all participating non-profits. During the four meetings in between, the team of seven women met weekly through Zoom to focus on the challenge of increasing the community’s awareness of C4C and its services. Advisors over time developed actionable ways to address those challenges.

The resulting suggestions coming out of these meetings gave the C4C team some specific tasks to present to the Board on how to improve its digital media outreach to the community. For example, the websites for C4C and Women’s Health Specialists were deemed to need more obvious connection to each other. Appointments are made with Women’s Health Specialists (in Chico) for clients who need them in Grass Valley. Separate Facebook accounts for both C4C and Women’s Health Specialists also need to indicate their connection to each other. In addition, C4C Instagram account postings were advised to contain more hashtags to enable more hits from Google searches, with the goal of increasing followers and spreading awareness through this media.

Other miscellaneous areas of potential effectiveness included descriptions of the Clinic’s telehealth services, as many clients likely are not aware that they can receive virtual pre-appointment advice and information that can help them determine a plan of action for their reproductive health. Encouragement was given toward having a booth at different kinds of public gatherings to once again be known as a healthcare clinic—because reproductive health is healthcare.

All in all, participants gained insights and motivation to strategize a campaign to let the public know that Citizens for Choice is an option for the many services sought in the reproductive health area. Undoubtedly, we face a time where C4C needs to be on the radar of those women whose reproductive rights are likely be denied, based on state residence. Grass Valley, California, may well become a destination to regain those rights.

By Cece Royal

By Marty Dekay-Bemis

Comprehensive sex education has long been recognized as an essential part of growing up. Studies have shown that when teens have access to this information, they make wiser decisions about their sexuality and are less likely to engage in risky sexual behavior. The gap in our local schools regarding providing comprehensive sex education is felt county wide. Citizens for Choice(C4C) is dedicated to narrowing that gap when possible. In 2021, C4C partnered with Bright Futures For Youth (BFFY) to reach adolescents with peer-led comprehensive sex education.

BFFY serves over 200 adolescents in their programs (The Friendship Club, NEO, and Safe), providing a perfect opportunity to reach many young people with accurate information about reproductive health. Adolescents are more receptive to information about sensitive subjects when they hear it from their peers, as opposed to adults. Peer-led sex education is an especially good example of this. BFFY has developed a well-established peer helper program that has been in place for many years. The peers teach youth in their programs about many aspects of their development, including relationships, social media safety, and much more. Expanding their peer helper program to incorporate comprehensive sex ed greatly complements this program.

Prior to receiving training, interested peer helpers went on a field trip to The Clinic! where they received a tour as well as in-depth and hands-on information about the services the clinic offers. Mackenzie Dillis, Certified Nurse Midwife and medical provider for The Clinic!, was on hand to answer questions from the peer helpers. Stepping inside the clinic was an eye-opening experience for the peer helpers and they were eager to learn all they could so they could pass along their knowledge during their presentations at The Friendship Club (TFC).

Nine peer helpers received training that included comprehensive sex education. Out of the nine, two young women stepped forward, eager to present the information to a group of 12 ninth graders. Using a well-developed powerpoint, they delivered accurate and non-judgmental information in a safe environment that was familiar to the girls. Responses from the 9th-grade students were overwhelmingly positive, and a follow-up quiz confirmed that they had learned a great deal from the presentations. 

Future plans for the BFFY/C4C partnership include further development of the sex-ed component of the peer helper program to deliver information to youth in all programs that BFFY offers. Ultimately reaching over 200 adolescents with comprehensive sex education will enable Citizens for Choice to narrow the gap of information among adolescents in our communities.

Excerpted from a June 2019 article from the Center for American Progress

By Nora Ellmann, Kelly Rimar and Jamila Taylor 

Medication abortion can be a key tool in the fight for reproductive choice: It has the potential to bring abortion access to those who need it most—particularly people of color, low-income people, people in rural areas, and others who cannot easily access providers giving individuals greater agency over their health care decisions.

Medication abortion, or abortion with pills, is safe, effective, and less invasive than a surgical procedure and gives people the option to have an abortion outside of a clinic in the comfort and privacy of their own homes. Yet despite the proven record and benefits of the medication abortion regimen, anti-choice groups continue to spew false claims about its safety.

As access to quality reproductive health care is under siege, it is crucial to recognize and correct the lies around medication abortion that anti-abortion groups have propagated in order to influence federal and state policies. Ellmann, Rimar and Taylor have detailed the truth behind myths about medication abortion.

Myth 1: Medication abortion is unsafe

Reality: The medication abortion regimen is used in the first 10 weeks of pregnancy and consists of two medications: mifepristone and misoprostol. Mifepristone is taken first, generally in a clinic or health center, followed by misoprostol one to two days later, usually at home. Mifepristone, the first of the two pills, has extremely low rates of adverse events and is safer than many medications, including Tylenol and Viagra.

In 2016, after a thorough review of medical evidence, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) extended the eligibility period from seven weeks to 10 weeks gestation and reduced the approved dosage from 600 mg to 200 mg. In March 2018, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a report affirming that the FDA acted appropriately in revising the Mifeprex label in 2016, despite anti-choice advocates’ claims to the contrary.

Mifepristone remains much more heavily regulated than other prescription drugs as a result of the politicization of abortion care. The FDA has required a Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) for mifepristone. The mifepristone REMS limits its distribution; providers must register to be permitted to distribute mifepristone, and it can only be distributed in hospitals, clinics, or medical offices. This means that under the REMS, mifepristone is not available at pharmacies and can only be prescribed by a limited number of providers, which

significantly and unnecessarily restricts access to medication abortion—particularly for people who live far from a clinic or do not have an approved provider in their area. The American Medical Association (AMA) and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) support lifting the REMS, as they are not medically necessary!

Myth 2: Medication abortion is traumatic

Reality: Everyone experiences abortion differently, and those who have abortions are entitled to the full range of emotions about their experience. However, research and powerful personal storytelling indicate overwhelmingly that people do not regret their abortions. So-called post-abortion syndrome, which anti-choice groups often point to as evidence of the traumatic effects of abortion, is not recognized by the American Psychological Association and decades of research have disproven the claim that abortion compromises mental health.

As for the physical experience of a medication abortion, most people report bleeding, nausea, cramping, and fatigue. These symptoms resemble those of a heavy period, and over-the-counter medications such as Ibuprofen are recommended for pain management. Most people may resume normal activity within a day or two after a medication abortion.

If there is any trauma involved in abortion care, it is the struggle of having to navigate unjust restrictions on abortion access and attacks from anti-choice protesters and politicians. The landmark Turnaway Study from Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health (ANSIRH) provides evidence of this experience. The study found that while having an abortion was not associated with mental health issues, being denied a wanted abortion was associated with anxiety and low self-esteem in the short-term. The option to end a pregnancy at home provides patients with greater access to care and prioritizes autonomy and comfort in the abortion experience.

Myth 3: Medication abortion is ineffective and reversible

Reality: Medication abortion is more than 95 percent effective and has been used safely in the United States for nearly two decades. Although the two-drug protocol is recommended, misoprostol—the second medication—is about 75 percent to 90 percent effective in terminating an unplanned pregnancy when taken alone.

The medical community overwhelmingly agrees that claims of “abortion reversal” are unsupported by medical and scientific evidence. Promoters of this myth claim that abortion may be reversed after mifepristone is taken as long as the second drug, misoprostol, is not taken and the hormone progesterone is administered throughout the first trimester. However, this simply is not true. This implies that those who choose to have abortions second-guess themselves and later regret the decision. In reality, people who have abortions take their reproductive health decisions seriously and, as previously discussed, almost universally do not regret the decision.

Conclusion

Medication abortion is a proven safe and effective method that can significantly improve the availability and experience of abortion care. It is a powerful enabler of reproductive autonomy, allowing people to choose the abortion setting that is safest and most comfortable for them. To ensure access to this crucial health care option, we must put an end to the lies that undermine the health care decisions of all people seeking abortion care.