Greene Foster, Diana, PhD

Assistant Professor, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences

Email: greened@obgyn.ucsf.edu

Biosketch:

Diana Greene Foster, Ph.D., is a demographer who uses quantitative models and analyses to evaluate the effectiveness of family and family planning policies and the effect of unintended pregnancy on women’s lives. She designed and carried out the evaluation of access to care under Family PACT, California’s family planning program and estimated the pregnancies averted through this program. This work demonstrated the effectiveness of the program in expanding the number of points of service, improving access to care, particularly among Latinas, and reducing the incidence of unintended pregnancy. Dr. Foster created a new methodology for estimating pregnancies averted based on a Markov model and a microsimulation to identify the cost-effectiveness of advance provision of emergency contraception.  Dr. Foster is currently leading a panel study of women who have experienced an unintended pregnancy.

Areas of Interest:

• Consequences of unintended pregnancy for women’s health and wellbeing
• Cost effectiveness of family planning programs
• Estimation of pregnancies averted through contraceptive use and family planning services provision
• Consequences of poor access to family planning services

Ongoing Research Projects:

Title: Social, economic and health effects of receiving and being denied an abortion
Key Funder(s): Private Foundations
Major Project Goal: This project how receiving or being denied an abortion affects women’s mental and physical health, work, schooling, relationships and the physical and developmental outcomes of their children.
Principal Investigator: D.G. Foster

Title: FamilyPACT Evaluation
Key Funder(s): California Department of Health Services
Major Project Goal: The major goal is to measure the effect of the program on unintended pregnancy rates and program cost effectiveness.
Principal Investigator: C. Brindis
Project Director: Antonia Biggs


Updated September 2007