How is the fall semester already coming to an end! Thus far, I have served as a Reproductive Rights and Reproductive Health Intern for three semesters working alongside Dr. Johnson as her research assistant. Reflecting on my time as an intern, I have grown both personally and academically through my experience with NCI. I have developed valuable research skills, such as coding literature, navigating databases, conducting in-depth interviews, and writing literature reviews. I also have discovered and cultivated my passion for maternal and child health. After working on Dr. Johnson’s breastfeeding study, Working and Nursing, and her upcoming book relating to how different states classify parentage under gestational surrogacy and artificial insemination, I hope to continue my work in women’s health next year as a medical student at Tulane School of Medicine.
In just two semesters, Dr. Johnson and I have successfully researched statutes relating to assisted reproductive technologies and parentage in all fifty states! After creating preliminary timelines for when each statute went into effect, I added each state and their corresponding statutes to an excel document. Finally, our excel document is completed and is organized based on when the statute went into effect, which statutes were only introduced, which states adopted the UPA, the political affiliation of governors who signed off on specific bills, and noteworthy case studies. Dr. Johnson hopes to add this chart to the appendix of her final book manuscript. Additionally, I also worked on finding press coverage for some ground-breaking or controversial statutes, specifically in Louisiana and Florida. Next semester, Dr. Johnson and I plan to take some of the data we have collected and write an article for publication!
Thanks for following my third semester as a Reproductive Rights and Reproductive Health Intern. Stay tuned in the spring for my last semester as an intern and Tulane undergraduate!
Until next time,
Christina McCarthy
Caption for Attached Picture: Sample Timeline for the State of Illinois