Screening and Other Preventive Health Care Services

For many people of reproductive age, a clinic or health center offering SRH services may be their only source of health care; therefore, visits can include provision of or referral to other preventive health services to improve the overall health of individuals and communities. 

This section provides guidance on the following preventive health services related to SRH: screening for chronic medical conditions (for example, diabetes and hypertension) that can impact fertility and family building; providing immunizations; cancer screening; providing gender-affirming care; and discussing topics such as perimenopause, mental health, use of alcohol and other substances, sexual assault, intimate partner violence, and human trafficking. The Women’s Preventive Services Initiative (WPSI) also provides detailed guidance on these topics.149

SRH clinics that do not have the capacity to offer primary care services should have strong linkages to community providers to facilitate referrals for needs identified during SRH visits. In addition to the specific recommendations regarding the preventive health services below, it is useful if providers and clinic staff understand how social determinants of health influence health outcomes and how to provide support. At the patient level, providers can look for clinical flags, ask patients about social needs in a compassionate way, and help them access support services.150 Clinics can use tools to help identify social needs, including:

• The Accountable Health Communities HealthRelated Social Needs Screening Tool151
• HealthBegins Upstream Risks Screening Tool152
• WellRx153
• Your Current Life Situation Survey154
• Protocol for Responding to and Assessing Patients’ Assets, Risks, and Experiences (PRAPARE)155

Clinics should provide culturally sensitive services by using interpreters and patient navigators where possible and ensuring care is accessible to those most in need (for example, by offering bus fare and child care, extending clinic hours, etc.).150 When patients do not have access to a primary care provider, SRH providers should aim to offer the following suite of services: counseling about healthy weight, screening for chronic medical conditions, screening for and administration of immunizations, screening for cancer, gender-affirming care, perimenopausal care, screening for mental health, alcohol and other substance abuse, sexual violence and intimate partner violence, and human trafficking. These services should be provided in accordance with federal and professional medical recommendations that recognize the essential role of primary care services for all people and the impact that social factors, including economic stability, social and community context, and health care access, have on health and well-being.