Bringing research to life: a collaborative partnership dedicated to improving reproductive health care.

The Society of Family Planning (SFP) and the Association of Reproductive Health Professionals (ARHP) are two organizations with different but complementary missions. Together, we write this editorial in order to raise awareness of how we work collaboratively, specifically around translating scientific research in family planning and abortion into direct patient care. As Contraception's two sponsoring organizations, SFP and ARHP represent a productive model for professional partnerships that can address key scientific issues while ultimately helping improve the quality of care. Academic societies like SFP, through their support for evidence-based research and development of practice guidelines, can enhance the effectiveness of professional education organizations like ARHP that develop continuing medical education programs and learning environments for health care providers of all disciplines and specialties. SFP and ARHP support the recommendation from Bradley et al. [1] that professional partnerships are an effective mechanism for disseminating the latest science and evidence regarding best practices. Carefully developed clinical guidelines help health care providers translate science into their daily interactions with patients. According to Ornstein et al. [2], “A well-crafted guideline promotes quality by reducing health-care variations, improving diagnostic accuracy, promoting effective therapy, and discouraging ineffective — or potentially harmful — interventions.” Clinical guidelines are also an essential component of effective training and education programs for health professionals [3]. Furthermore, the pressing public health issue of contraception and obesity provides an excellent example of how an effective partnership between a medical society such as SFP and a professional education group like ARHP can help work in tandem to translate research into practice with the goal of improving patient care. The leadership of the SFP identified a pressing need to address health risks associated with obesity among patients seeking contraceptive care. Unfortunately, the relationship between obesity and contraception has not been extensively studied, yet the need for provider education on the topic and the opportunity for improving the health of overweight patients