From Medical Student to
Period Pro!
Grasp clinical aspects of adolescent menstrual health; engage with your community; develop skills for better communication with future patients.
The Period Education Project onboards and equips passionate, driven medical students from select schools across the country to become Period Pros, supporting our mission to spread trusted menstrual health education and become advocates for eliminating period poverty.
On a personal note, this was probably some of the most fun I’ve had in medical school in a while, so I really appreciate the org and all your help.
Period Pro, Loyola Stritch School of Medicine
To me, being a Period Pro means being an advocate for adolescents and contributing to the effort to reduce health disparities.
Period Pro, University of Houston College of Medicine
I think the event was a beautiful way to give back to an underserved community that looked like my own and I will cherish the opportunity forever.
Period Pro, University of South Carolina Greenville School of Medicine
Become a Period Pro
Applications are open to medical students interested in starting a PEP Squad at their medical school. PEP Squads are student-run and consist of a Chief Period Pro, who’ll act as the group lead and liaison between the PEP team and their Squad, as well as approximately 4-8 additional Period Pros.
The best Period Pros are passionate, engaging medical students, representing diverse backgrounds, with an interest in community service, menstrual health equity and educating young people. A faculty advisor from within each medical school is required to support the PEP Squad and assist with networking and sustainability.
Period Pro Benefits
- Serve as a role model to youth in your community
- Grasp clinical aspects of adolescent menstrual health including topics that are inconsistently covered in medical school curricula
- Gain experience with public speaking and educating youth and adults about menstrual health
- Develop the skills to improve your comfort in discussing intimate topics with youth and adults
- Engage with your community through service that is educational, skill-building, and emotionally rewarding
Period Pro Expectations
- Complete online training (duration of 4 to 6 hours) and benchmark knowledge tests
- Help identify community partners to host PEP Rallies (PEP Staff will make the contacts)
- Participate in quarterly PEP meetings to advance menstrual health knowledge and engage with fellow Period Pros
- Deliver at least 3 PEP Rallies with a co-presenter and complete a post-rally report.
- Engage in menstrual health education through other formats such as health fairs, video content, or written content for the PEP website or social channels
Chief Period Pro Benefits
- Lead your community’s effort to end the stigma surrounding menstrual health and empower youth through accurate education.
- Access direct mentorship by the physician leaders of the Period Education Project.
- Connect with Chief Period Pros at select medical schools across the nation and form a network of peers dedicated to community involvement and menstrual health.
Chief Period Pro Expectations
- Ensure squad’s training goals are met.
- Serve as a liaison between the medical school and PEP to promote squad activity.
- Sustain your school’s program by encouraging involvement & recruiting new members.
- Assist in succession planning to recruit the next Chief Period Pro.
Why We’re Hyping-up Menstrual Health?
A history of limited education within a culture of stigma has created generations of girls and women who don’t know how their bodies work and a society where menstrual health is often ignored or dismissed.
With this essential education we can:
Reduce deep-rooted medical bias related to menstrual symptoms in girls and women
Reform the health care system that has too often missed important opportunities for prevention or early intervention of common health problems
Help communities create greater equity by reducing interruptions caused by a normal biologic process
…One PEP Rally at a time!
“By normalizing menstruation and raising awareness of normal and abnormal symptoms, we can reduce the health burden of missed or delayed diagnoses related to conditions like endometriosis, polycystic ovarian syndrome, premenstrual dysphoric disorder, clotting abnormalities, and infertility.”
– Dr. Melisa Holmes, OBGYN, FACOG, Period Education Project Co-Founder
Interested in Becoming a Period Pro?
Here’s how it works.
1. Apply
Submit the application
2 - Recruit & Train
Recruit your Squad and begin onboarding
3. Make an Impact
Serve as a Period Pro
To receive the New Medical School Application and additional information, please email Maggie at: maggie@periodeducationproject.org
Contact us
to schedule a PEP Rally for your Community Organization
Download
the Medical School Get Started Guide by clicking the link below
Help Us
improve young women’s health by donating today