Optimal Outcomes
12th annual Perinatal, Reproductive and Sexual Health Conference
February 27, 2026 - Minneapolis, MN
at the Minneapolis Marriott West
Hosted by: Minnesota Affiliate of the American College of Nurse Midwives
All are welcome!
Calling all perinatal, reproductive and sexual health advocates interested in optimizing health outcomes! The MN Affiliate of the ACNM created the Optimal Outcomes: Perinatal, Reproductive, and Sexual Health Conference in 2013 to provide education about health disparities, promoting physiologic birth, and ways to improve health outcomes in our community.
This interdisciplinary annual conference is attended by midwives, nurses, physicians, advanced practice Providers, doulas, health professionals, students and community members interested in perinatal, reproductive and sexual health outcomes. Come earn CEUs and build community!
February 27th, 2026
Minneapolis Marriott West
9960 Wayzata Blvd
Minneapolis, MN 55426
In-person or virtual-only tickets available
Virtual access will be available starting 1 week after the event and open for 90 days from event date
Conference Highlights
Virtual Viewing After the Event: Recorded speaker videos and presentation materials will be available at the secure page for all Optimal Outcomes attendees after the conference and remain accessible for three months. A password will be emailed to you once you purchase your Optimal Outcomes Conference Ticket and again after the conference once all virtual materials become available.
Scholarship tickets: Scholarship tickets will be available for people on a first come first served basis. Equity Scholarships will be available for people from underrepresented groups, such as LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC, and others at a discounted rate. Those who desire an Equity Scholarship should complete this form to request a conference scholarship. If you have any other questions about the Optimal Outcomes conference, please contact us via our Optimal Outcomes contact form
Things to know
before you go:
Location:
Minneapolis Marriott West
9960 Wayzata Blvd
Minneapolis, MN 55426
map & directions
Parking: Free parking available in outdoor lots
Meals: Continental breakfast, lunch and snacks will be provided. Community building cocktail hour cash bar will be held after the conference
Accommodations: All gender bathrooms and lactation rooms available
Dress: Business casual, dress in layers as it can be difficult to regulate the temperature of the rooms
Continuing Education Credits: up to 10 CEUs will be available
Exhibit Hall: Visit with sponsors and vendors in our vibrant exhibit hall. Remember to bring your wallet to support local artisans. Check off tables visited on your passport to be eligible for our coveted door prizes!
Conference registration/Check in: starts at 7am, Continental breakfast provided 7am-8am
2026 conference Agenda
7:00 - 8:00 am
Lobby
Registration and Check-In
Continental breakfast served
8:00 - 8:15 am
Waterford Ballroom
Opening Comments
MN ACNM
Co-Presidents
Optimal Outcomes Co-Chairs
8:20 - 9:20 am
Waterford Ballroom
Lessons from the ARRIVE Trial: Induction of Labor, Labor Dystocia, Cesarean Births Oh My!
Lisa Kane Low, PhD, CNM, FACNM
Lisa Kane Low PhD CNM is the Senior Associate Dean of Professional Graduate Studies and Professional Relations in the School of Nursing and holds an appointment as the Carolyn M. Sampselle Professor in School of Nursing and Professor in Department of Women’s and Gender Studies and Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at University of Michigan. She is in full scope midwifery clinical practice for over thirty-five years in the hospital setting where the midwifery footprint has grown from a small 2 person practice in 1985 to over 60 midwives working across all areas, including education and training of midwifery students, medical students and residents.
Lisa has held leadership positions on a national and state level participating in development of national standard setting documents for the American College of Nurse-Midwives and as a member of the ACOG obstetrics practice committee. Her research focuses on promoting healthy birth practices including leading initiatives focused on safely reducing primary cesarean births, prevention of hemorrhage and the role of Doulas in improving health outcomes. She is a past President of the American College of Nurse-Midwives.
9:30 - 10:30 am
Waterford Ballroom
Manual Rotation of the Persistent Occiput Posterior Fetus
Jessica Ellis, PhD, CNM
1. Define normal and abnormal occiput posterior presentation in first and second stage of labor.
2. Review current evidence on management for persistent posterior malpresentation.
3. Discuss interventions for resolution of persistent OP in early, active and second stage of labor.
4. Review techniques for digital and manual rotation.
Dr. Jessica Ellis, PHD, CNM, FACNM, is a Clinical Associate Professor in the College of Nursing at the University of Utah, where she serves as Specialty Director for the Nurse-Midwifery track. A Certified Nurse-Midwife with over 15 years of clinical experience, she is recognized nationally for her expertise in intrapartum care, particularly in physiologic birth and the management of the occiput posterior (OP) position. Dr. Ellis integrates simulation, case-based learning, and hands-on workshops to enhance clinical decision-making and manual skills for optimal maternal and neonatal outcomes.
10:30 - 10:50 am
Exhibit Hall/Lobby
BREAK
Coffee, Tea
11:00 - 12:00 pm
Waterford Ballroom 1
Diabetes in Pregnancy: Diagnosis, Management, and Lifelong Implications
Sareen Nashif, MD
1. Outline classification of perinatal diabetes. – Describe risks of perinatal diabetes.
2. Discuss diagnosis of gestational diabetes, including recent ACOG updates.
3. Explain non-pharmacologic and pharmacologic treatment approaches.
4. Discuss lifetime risks of overt diabetes and recommended enhanced screening.
Assistant Professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Women’s Health in the Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine at the University of Minnesota
11:00 - 12:00 pm
Waterford Ballroom 2
The Modern Menopause: Evidence-Based Hormone Therapy Meets Integrative Medicine
Jennika Tomashek, DNP, FNP-BC, MSCP
I’m a Nurse Practitioner with over 15 years of experience spanning Emergency Medicine, Internal Medicine, and Integrative/Functional Medicine. Over the past five years, I’ve focused on Integrative Medicine with a special interest in menopause care. My passion lies in bridging the conventional and holistic worlds of medicine—because that’s where patients truly thrive. I currently have my own private practice Superior Integrative Medicine. I also work at the Penny George Institute for Health and Healing at Allina
11:00 - 12:00 pm
Waterford Ballroom 3
Calm, Rest, and Relief: The Role of Nutraceuticals in Perinatal Wellbeing
Michelle Ullery, DNP, APRN, CNP
1. Analyze current evidence regarding the safety, efficacy, and mechanisms of nutraceuticals commonly used to manage sleep disturbances, stress, and pain in pregnancy.
2. Evaluate the clinical implications of nutraceutical use in pregnancy, including potential interactions with pharmacologic therapies and prenatal supplements.
3. Integrate evidence-based nutraceutical strategies into perinatal care plans to promote maternal comfort and wellbeing.
4. Strategize ways to overcome inequities in access to integrative health options influence perinatal health outcomes and the use of nutraceuticals across diverse populations.
Michelle Ullery has been practicing as a Family Nurse Practitioner since 2010. She received her Doctor of Nursing Practice degree from University of North Dakota – Grand Forks and holds certification in Functional Medicine through the Institute of Functional Medicine. She currently provides integrative care within the rehabilitation service line at Allina Health, where her clinical practice emphasizes identifying the root causes of illness and applying evidence-informed integrative strategies to optimize health and wellness. Dr. Ullery also serves as the Director of the DNP-FNP Program at Augsburg University and teaches advanced pharmacology and nutraceutical courses for Family Nurse Practitioner students.
12:00 - 1:00 pm
Atrium/Exhibit Hall
LUNCH
(Sponsors, Artisans, Doulas, Massage)
1:10 - 2:20 pm
Waterford Ballroom 1
Beyond Birth: Improving Care and Outcomes for Hypertensive Disorders of Pregnancy in the Postpartum Period
Bethany Sabol, MD, MAS
1. Describe the unique risks of the postpartum period for birthing people and associated morbidity and mortality
2. Outline the current evidence for postpartum remote blood pressure monitoring and introduce our HOPE-BP program
3. Integrate practical tools for implementation of home blood pressure monitoring programs in different healthcare settings
4. Describe lifelong cardiovascular risks associated with HDP and areas of ongoing effect to improve maternal cardiovascular outcomes
Bethany Sabol, MD MAS is an Associate Professor of Maternal-Fetal Medicine at the University of Minnesota Medical Center (UMMC). She earned her MD at the University of Illinois at Chicago, focusing on urban medicine and health disparities. She completed her OB-GYN residency at Oregon Health & Science University and a Maternal-Fetal Medicine
fellowship at Washington University in St. Louis. She earned a Master of Applied Science in Patient Safety and Healthcare Quality from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Dr. Sabol now serves as the Medical Director for Quality and Safety for the Women & Children’s Service Line for M Health Fairview, she is the co-director of the they system’s obstetrical quality collaborative Zero Birth Injury (ZBI), and is the Vice Chair of Quality and Safety for the Department of Obstetric, Gynecology, and Women’s Health at the University of Minnesota. Clinically, she is the co-director of the Cardio-Obstetrics Program at the University and is the creator and physician lead of HOPE-BP UMMC’s postpartum home blood pressure monitoring program for birthing people with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy.
1:10 - 2:20 pm
Waterford Ballroom 2
1:10 - 2:20 pm
Waterford Ballroom 3
Roots of Racial Inequities in Lactation
Camila Valenzuala-Panza IBCLC, Doula
& Sierra Leone’ Dillard, CLC, Doula
1. Explain historical and present-day individual and systemic barriers to lactation, identifying examples of bias in patient care, and understand the impact of bias on the patient and patient-provider relationship.
2. Describe how to foster a patient-provider relationship that is supportive of Black and Indigenous individuals who are lactating and their families, strategizing about how to do this in one’s own practice.
3. Identify at least three ways a provider can implement the concepts from this session to address racism in lactation care for Black and Indigenous families on an individual and/or systems level.
Camila is an International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant serving Indigenous families as both a Lactation Consultant and Full-Spectrum Doula through the Ninde Doula Program at Division of Indian Work. Camila has served families as a doula for over six years and has seven years of personal experience in breastfeeding.
Sierra Leone’ Williams Minneapolis, Minnesota born and raised. Resilient, passionate AfroCaribbean woman. Mother of six children whom I love with every bone in my body. My passion is to support women, children and families and how to keep them together. I enjoy working with diverse populations, youth and community organization to help develop ways to tap into the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual well being. I spent three years as a Doula and parenting educator for incarcerated women which taught me to bring extra love and light along with me. I believe that as a birthing person you have the power and control to create your own “birth plan” by reminding yourself that “you got this”. Eleven years Certified Full Spectrum Doula, Certified Lactation Counselor, Mentor, Yoga Instructor, and Motivational Speaker.
2:20 - 2:40 pm
Lobby/Exhibit Hall
BREAK
Coffee, Tea, Cookies
2:50 - 3:50 pm
Waterford Ballroom
Taking a Pleasure-Inclusive Approach to Sexual Health Care
Kristen Mark, PhD, MPH
1: Identify how traditional models of sexual and reproductive healthcare have centered risk and pathology, and describe how pleasure-based approaches can enhance patient wellbeing and engagement.
2: Analyze the ways that equity and bias influence access to and experiences of sexual pleasure within healthcare settings.
3: Apply strategies for integrating inclusive, culturally responsive, and pleasure-affirming practices into clinical care, patient communication, and health education.
Dr. Kristen Mark is a behavioral health scientist, educator, and therapist whose work focuses on sexuality and relationships. She is a tenured Full Professor, Interim Director, and Director of Education at the Eli Coleman Institute for Sexual and Gender Health in the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health at the University of Minnesota Medical School, where she also holds the Joycelyn Elders Endowed Chair in Sexual Health Education. Dr. Mark serves as Director of the Center for Women’s Health Research at UMN and as Affiliate Research Faculty at the Kinsey Institute at Indiana University. Dr. Mark is a certified sexuality educator and supervisor through AASECT, is elected as the Scientific Chair of the World Association of Sexual Health, and leads the Bridging Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women’s Health (BIRCWH) program at UMN. Her research examines sexual wellbeing across the lifespan, with particular focus on sexual desire, sexual function, pleasure, satisfaction, and the relational and contextual factors that shape these experiences. She also leads global health research in Tanzania, improving training for midwives, nurses, and physicians in addressing the sexual and reproductive health needs of persons with disabilities. Her research, education, and clinical care aim to ensure healthcare professionals are adequately trained to address sexual health with a trauma-informed and inclusive pleasure-forward lens. Dr. Mark’s work has been widely published in leading peer-reviewed journals, presented at hundreds of conferences all over the world, and she is regularly sought by media outlets to translate research on sex and relationships for the public.
4:00 - 5:00 pm
Waterford Ballroom
People Over Policies: Centering Consent, Autonomy, Respect, and Equity (C.A.R.E.) in Trauma-Informed Perinatal Care
Maggie Runyon, MSN, RNC-OB
1. Critically analyze how personal biases and historical structural processes are embedded within standard perinatal care policies, and identify at least two ways these policies prioritize institutional liability over patient autonomy and trust
2. Apply the principles of trauma-informed care by summarizing at least three specific practices that support both patient well-being and clinician self-care within their professional role.
3. Integrate the C.A.R.E. framework (Consent, Autonomy, Respect, and Equity) into their next three direct care interactions by evaluating each interaction against the framework’s four pillars.
Maggie Runyon (she/her) is a nurse, educator, writer, and speaker. She began her nursing career in 2009 and has since practiced in hospitals and communities around the country. In 2019, Maggie founded Your BIRTH Partners with a mission to cultivate inclusive, collaborative birthcare environments rooted in autonomy, respect, and equity. Maggie is currently pursuing her PhD in Nursing and loves educating, mentoring, and learning alongside other clinicians. She recently authored her first book, I Thought I Was Here to Help, which chronicles her early career journey and the lessons she has learned.
