Jessica N. Sanders

Jessica N. Sanders, PhD, MSPH

Languages spoken: English

Academic Information

Departments Primary - Obstetrics & Gynecology , Adjunct - Family & Preventive Medicine

Divisions: Public Health

Research Interests

  • Health Policy
  • Infertility
  • Sexuality
  • Contraception and Family Planning
  • Social Determinants of Health
  • Patient Reported Outcomes
  • Survey Methodology
  • Population Health

Jessica Sanders is an Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Utah in the Division of Family Planning. She received her PhD in Public Health from the University of Utah with an emphasis in Women’s Health. Dr. Sanders approaches contraceptive access through a human rights lens, advocating for the full range of reproductive health options through interdisciplinary academic and clinical research to ensure an evidence-based and person-centered approach to education, policy, and clinical care. Research interests include: Family Planning, Contraception, Abortion, Patient Reported Outcomes, Health Policy, Policy Evaluation, Medicaid, Infertility, Subfecundity, Sexual Experience, Sexuality, Social Determinants of Health, Linked-Data, and Health Care Access.

Education History

Doctoral Training University of Utah School of Medicine
 PhD
University of Utah School of Medicine
 MSPH
Undergraduate Colorado College
 BA

Selected Publications

Journal Article

  1. Lazaris E, Sanders JN, Carter G, Olsen J, Gero A, Gawron LM (2024). Contraceptive uptake among gender-expansive individuals in the HER Salt Lake Contraceptive Initiative. Contraception, 110446. (Read full article)
  2. Gawron LM, Kaiser JE, Gero A, Sanders JN, Johnstone EB, Turok DK (2024). Pharmacodynamic evaluation of the etonogestrel contraceptive implant initiated midcycle with and without ulipristal acetate: An exploratory study. Contraception, 132, 110370. (Read full article)
  3. Jeon N, Kent-Marvick J, Sanders JN, Hanson H, Simonsen SE (2023). Comparing maternal factors associated with postpartum depression between primiparous adolescents and adults: A large retrospective cohort study. Birth, 51(1), 218-228. (Read full article)
  4. Torres E, Carter G, Gero A, Simmons RG, Sanders JN, Turok DK (2024). Frequency of same-day contraceptive initiation, recent unprotected intercourse, and pregnancy risk: a prospective cohort study of multiple contraceptive methods. Am J Obstet Gynecol. (Read full article)
  5. Panushka KA, Kozlowski Z, Dalessandro C, Sanders JN, Millar MM, Gawron LM (2024). "It's Not a Top Priority": A Qualitative Analysis of Provider Views on Barriers to Reproductive Healthcare Provision for Homeless Women in the United States. Soc Work Public Health, 38(5-8), 428-436. (Read full article)
  6. Woodcock AL, Carter G, Baayd J, Turok DK, Turk J, Sanders JN, Pangasa M, Gawron LM, Kaiser JE (2023). Effects of the Dobbs v Jackson Women's Health Organization Decision on Obstetrics and Gynecology Graduating Residents' Practice Plans. Obstet Gynecol, 142(5), 1105-1111. (Read full article)
  7. Simmons RG, Baayd J, Waters M, Diener Z, Turok DK, Sanders JN (2023). Assessing contraceptive use as a continuum: outcomes of a qualitative assessment of the contraceptive journey. Reprod Health, 20(1), 33. (Read full article)
  8. Baayd J, Heins Z, Walker D, Afulani P, Sterling M, Sanders JN, Cohen S (2023). Context Matters: Factors Affecting Implementation of Simulation Training in Nursing and Midwifery Schools in North America, Africa and Asia. Clin Simul Nurs, 75, 1-10. (Read full article)
  9. Kaiser JE, Kurtz T, Glasser A, Brintz BJ, Gawron LM, Turok DK, Sanders JN (2022). Mifepristone for miscarriage treatment in Utah: A survey of clinician knowledge and assessment of an educational video on future use. AEM Educ Train, 6(6), e10834. (Read full article)
  10. Kaiser JE, Turok DK, Gero A, Gawron LM, Simmons RG, Sanders JN (2022). One-year pregnancy and continuation rates after placement of levonorgestrel or copper intrauterine devices for emergency contraception: a randomized controlled trial. Am J Obstet Gynecol. (Read full article)
  11. Storck KE, Gawron LM, Sanders JN, Wiaderny N, Turok DK (2022). "I just had to pay the money and be supportive": A qualitative exploration of the male-partner role in contraceptive decision-making in Salt Lake City, Utah family planning clinics. Contraception, 113, 78-83. (Read full article)
  12. Gero A, Simmons RG, Sanders JN, Turok DK (2022). Does access to no-cost contraception change method selection among individuals who report difficulty paying for health-related care? BMC Womens Health, 22(1), 327. (Read full article)
  13. Simmons RG, Baayd J, Gero A, Quade C, Mullholand M, Torres E, Turok DK, Sanders JN (2022). Implementation and Monitoring of the Family Planning Elevated Contraceptive Access Program, Utah, 2018‒2019. Am J Public Health, 112(S5), S528-S531. (Read full article)
  14. Thorman A, Engle A, Brintz B, Simmons RG, Sanders JN, Gawron LM, Turok DK, Kaiser JE (2022). Quantitative and qualitative impact of One Key Question on primary care providers' contraceptive counseling at routine preventive health visits. Contraception, 109, 73-79. (Read full article)
  15. Sanders JN, Simonsen SE, Porucznik CA, Hammoud AO, Smith KR, Stanford JB (2022). Fertility treatments and the risk of preterm birth among women with subfertility: a linked-data retrospective cohort study. Reprod Health, 19(1), 83. (Read full article)
  16. Kramer RD, Higgins JA, Everett B, Turok DK, Sanders JN (2021). A prospective analysis of the relationship between sexual acceptability and contraceptive satisfaction over time. Am J Obstet Gynecol, 226(3), 396.e1-396.e11. (Read full article)
  17. Dalessandro C, Kaiser J, Sanders JN (2021). Reproductive autonomy and feelings of control over pregnancy among emerging adult clients in a Utah (USA) contraceptive initiative study. Sex Reprod Healthc, 31, 100688. (Read full article)
  18. Sanders JN, Kean J, Zhang C, Presson AP, Everett BG, Turok DK, Higgins JA (2022). Measuring the Sexual Acceptability of Contraception: Psychometric Examination and Development of a Valid and Reliable Prospective Instrument. J Sex Med, 19(3), 507-520. (Read full article)
  19. Higgins JA, Kramer R, Senderowicz L, Everett B, Turok DK, Sanders JN (2022). Sex, poverty, and public health: Connections between sexual wellbeing and economic resources among US reproductive health clients. Perspect Sex Reprod Health, 54(1), 25-28. (Read full article)
  20. Kaiser JE, Galindo E, Sanders JN, Simmons RG, Gawron LM, Herrick JS, Brintz B, Turok DK (2021). Determining the impact of the Zika pandemic on primary care providers' contraceptive counseling of non-pregnant patients in the US: a mixed methods study. BMC Health Serv Res, 21(1), 1215. (Read full article)
  21. Fay KE, Clement AC, Gero A, Kaiser JE, Sanders JN, BakenRa AA, Turok DK (2021). Rates of pregnancy among levonorgestrel and copper intrauterine emergency contraception initiators: Implications for backup contraception recommendations. Contraception, 104(5), 561-566. (Read full article)
  22. Geist C, Everett BG, Simmons RG, Sanders JN, Gawron LM, Myers K, Turok DK (2021). Changing lives, dynamic plans: Prospective assessment of 12-month changes in pregnancy timing intentions and personal circumstances using data from HER Salt Lake. PLoS One, 16(9), e0257411. (Read full article)
  23. Walhof KA, Gawron LM, Turok DK, Sanders JN (2021). Long-Term Failure Rates of Interval Filshie Clips As a Method of Permanent Contraception. Womens Health Rep (New Rochelle), 2(1), 279-284. (Read full article)
  24. Higgins JA, Kramer RD, Everett B, Wright KQ, Turok DK, Sanders JN (2021). Association Between Patients' Perceptions of the Sexual Acceptability of Contraceptive Methods and Continued Use Over Time. JAMA Intern Med, 181(6), 874-876. (Read full article)
  25. Boraas CM, Sanders JN, Schwarz EB, Thompson I, Turok DK (2020). Risk of Pregnancy With Levonorgestrel-Releasing Intrauterine System Placement 6-14 Days After Unprotected Sexual Intercourse. Obstet Gynecol, 137(4), 623-625. (Read full article)
  26. Myers K, Sanders JN, Dalessandro C, Sexsmith CD, Geist C, Turok DK (2021). The HER Salt Lake media campaign: comparing characteristics and outcomes of clients who make appointments online versus standard scheduling. BMC Womens Health, 21(1), 121. (Read full article)
  27. Sexsmith CD, Sanders JN, Simmons RG, Dalessandro C, Turok DK (2021). Contraceptive Method Uptake at Title X Health Centers in Utah. Womens Health Issues, 31(3), 219-226. (Read full article)
  28. Gaj EB, Sanders JN, Singer PM (2021). State Legislation Related to Abortion Services, January 2017 to November 2020. JAMA Intern Med. (Read full article)
  29. Higgins JA, Kramer RD, Wright KQ, Everett B, Turok DK, Sanders JN (2021). Sexual Functioning, Satisfaction, and Well-Being Among Contraceptive Users: A Three-Month Assessment From the HER Salt Lake Contraceptive Initiative. J Sex Res, 1-10. (Read full article)
  30. Turok DK, Gero A, Simmons RG, Kaiser JE, Stoddard GJ, Sexsmith CD, Gawron LM, Sanders JN (2021). Levonorgestrel vs. Copper Intrauterine Devices for Emergency Contraception. N Engl J Med, 384(4), 335-344. (Read full article)
  31. Hopelian NG, Simmons RG, Sanders JN, Ward K, Jenkins SM, Espey E, Turok DK (2021). Comparison of levonorgestrel level and creamatocrit in milk following immediate versus delayed postpartum placement of the levonorgestrel IUD. BMC Womens Health, 21(1), 33. (Read full article)
  32. Simmons RG, Myers K, Gero A, Sanders JN, Quade C, Mullholand M, Turok DK (2020). Evaluating a Longitudinal Cohort of Clinics Engaging in the Family Planning Elevated Contraceptive Access Program: Study Protocol for a Comparative Interrupted Time Series Analysis. JMIR Res Protoc, 9(10), e18308. (Read full article)
  33. Disney EA, Sanders JN, Turok DK, Gawron LM (2020). Preconception Counseling, Contraceptive Counseling, and Long-Acting Reversible Contraception Use in Women with Type I Diabetes: A Retrospective Cohort Study. Womens Health Rep (New Rochelle), 1(1), 334-340. (Read full article)
  34. Gawron LM, Sanders JN, Sward K, Poursaid AE, Simmons R, Turok DK (2019). Multi-morbidity and Highly Effective Contraception in Reproductive-Age Women in the US Intermountain West: a Retrospective Cohort Study. J Gen Intern Med, 35(3), 637-642. (Read full article)
  35. Gawron LM, Simmons RG, Sanders JN, Myers K, Gundlapalli AV, Turok DK (2019). The effect of a no-cost contraceptive initiative on method selection by women with housing insecurity. Contraception, 101(3), 205-209. (Read full article)
  36. Royer PA, Olson LM, Jackson B, Weber LS, Gawron L, Sanders JN, Turok DK (2019). "In Africa, There Was No Family Planning. Every Year You Just Give Birth": Family Planning Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Among Somali and Congolese Refugee Women After Resettlement to the United States. Qual Health Res, 30(3), 391-408. (Read full article)
  37. Everett BG, Myers K, Sanders JN, Turok DK (2019). Male Abortion Beneficiaries: Exploring the Long-Term Educational and Economic Associations of Abortion Among Men Who Report Teen Pregnancy. J Adolesc Health, 65(4), 520-526. (Read full article)
  38. Thompson I, Sanders JN, Schwarz EB, Boraas C, Turok DK (2019). Copper intrauterine device placement 6-14 days after unprotected sex. Contraception, 100(3), 219-221. (Read full article)
  39. Royer PA, Turok DK, Sanders JN, Saltzman HM (2016). Choice of Emergency Contraceptive and Decision Making Regarding Subsequent Unintended Pregnancy. J Womens Health (Larchmt), 25(10), 1038-1043. (Read full article)
  40. Sanders JN, Gawron LM, Friedman S (2016). Sexual satisfaction and inflammatory bowel diseases: an interdisciplinary clinical challenge. Am J Obstet Gynecol, 215(1), 58-62. (Read full article)
  41. Stanford JB, Sanders JN, Simonsen SE, Hammoud A, Gibson M, Smith KR (2016). Methods for a Retrospective Population-based and Clinic-based Subfertility Cohort Study: the Fertility Experiences Study. Paediatr Perinat Epidemiol, 30(4), 397-407. (Read full article)
  42. Dermish A, Turok DK, Jacobson J, Murphy PA, Saltzman HM, Sanders JN (2016). Evaluation of an intervention designed to improve the management of difficult IUD insertions by advanced practice clinicians. Contraception, 93(6), 533-8. (Read full article)
  43. Turok DK, Sanders JN, Thompson IS, Royer PA, Eggebroten J, Gawron LM (2016). Preference for and efficacy of oral levonorgestrel for emergency contraception with concomitant placement of a levonorgestrel IUD: a prospective cohort study. Contraception, 93(6), 526-32. (Read full article)

Letter

  1. Gawron LM, Gero A, Kushner KL, Turok DK, Sanders JN (2019). Unprotected intercourse in the 2 weeks prior to quick-start initiation of an etonogestrel contraceptive implant with and without use of oral emergency contraception. [Letter to the editor]. Am J Obstet Gynecol, 222(4S), S891-S892. (Read full article)