Gould

Heather Gould

Research Project Director, ADAPT Study, Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health (ANSIRH), University of California, San Francisco
Chapter Member: Bay Area SSN
Areas of Expertise:

Connect with Heather

(510) 986-8936

About Heather

Gould serves as the Research Director for the ADAPT (Attitudes and Decisions After Pregnancy Testing) Study; which documents women’s pregnancy preferences; decision-making processes and experiences seeking prenatal or abortion care over time. Gould was a founding staff member of the UCSF ANSIRH Program when it began in 2002 and has overseen research activities for multiple projects; including the Turnaway Study — a longitudinal prospective study that examines the effects of having or being denied an abortion on women’s health and well-being. In addition to co-authoring several Turnaway Study manuscripts; she designed and conducted a qualitative interview study with 31 former Turnaway Study participants who shared their perspectives on how their lives were affected by the experience of having had an abortion or a baby five or more years earlier. Prior to receiving her Master’s in Public Health degree from the University of California; Berkeley; Gould worked as a manager and health specialist in family planning; abortion and prenatal care centers in Northern California; and as a consultant to national and international reproductive health organizations.

Contributions | No Jargon Podcast | In the News | Publications

Contributions

New Evidence about Women's Experience with Abortion - Compared to Carrying Unwanted Pregnancies to Term

  • Diana Greene Foster
  • Rana E. Barar
Basic Facts Brief,

Publications

"Implications of Georgia’s 20-Week Abortion Ban" (with Sarah M. Roberts and Ushma Upadhyay). American Journal of Public Health 105, no. 8 (2015): 77-82.

Argues that these bans will likely affect women throughout the South, as well as the Midwest and Northeast.

"Decision Rightness and Emotional Responses to Abortion in the United States: A Longitudinal Study" (with Corrine H. Rocca, Katrina Kimport, Sarah M. Roberts, John Neuhaus, and Diana Greene Foster). PLoS One 10, no. 7 (2015).

Examines women’s emotions and reports of whether the abortion decision was the right one for them over the three years after having an induced abortion. Finds that women experienced decreasing emotional intensity over time, and the overwhelming majority of women felt that termination was the right decision for them over three years. Suggests that emotional support may be beneficial for women having abortions who report intended pregnancies or difficulty deciding. 

"Projections and Opinions from 100 Experts in Long-Acting Reversible Contraception" (with Rana E. Barar, Diana Greene Foster, Ivette Gomez, Debbie Nguyen, and M. Antonia Biggs). Contraception 92, no. 6 (2015): 543-552.

Discusses a survey of published researchers of long-acting reversible contraceptives (LARCs), examines their opinions about important barriers to LARC use in the United States (US),and analyzes the projections for LARC use in the absence of barriers. Discusses the attitudes toward incentives for clinicians to provide and women to use LARC methods.