By: Molly Franzonello
Editor’s Note: We are delighted to welcome Dr. Ashley S. Womack, our original Executive Team student leader, as one of our keynote speakers at the FACTS Virtual Conference, which will be held on Friday evening, November 20th and Saturday, November 21st. As a board-certified obstetrician-gynecologist and minimally invasive gynecologic surgeon, Dr. Womack will speak about the role of hysteroscopy in restorative reproductive medicine. In addition, Dr. Womack and her colleagues at Pearl Health, one of our medical practice members, will address the benefits of a team-based approach to men’s and women’s health care. You won’t want to miss this exciting educational event, so be sure to register by our early bird deadline, October 15, to save $50.
Ashley S. Womack, MD, is a proud Texas native who was born and raised in Dallas. After attending the University of California where she earned a degree in sociology, she returned home to Dallas to begin her medical training at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.
Learning about FABMs
During her first year of medical school, Dr. Womack listened as couples in a Catholic group described how they charted their cycles. She knew of natural family planning (NFP), but their experiences showed her what cycle charting looked like in daily life. She sought out a local Billings instructor, became trained to be an instructor herself, and began sharing what she learned with other students.
“During her first year of medical school, Dr. Womack listened as couples … described how they charted their cycles … their experiences showed her what cycle charting looked like in daily life.”
Dr. Womack now owns her own practice, Pearl Health, in Dallas. Her work brings together fertility awareness-based methods (FABMs), medical care, and advanced gynecologic surgery for patients seeking answers to reproductive health concerns.
Discovering FACTS & Contributing to Fertility Awareness Education
As a second-year student, Dr. Womack began organizing a fertility awareness student group. In her search for speakers and collaborators, she connected with Dr./Sr. Hanna Klaus of Teen STAR, who introduced her to Dr. Marguerite Duane and FACTS. Dr. Duane had been teaching a class on FABMs to Georgetown University medical students.
Dr. Womack also helped establish an elective at UT Southwestern for medical students to learn from local fertility awareness educators and from presentations live-streamed from Georgetown. What had begun with couples sharing their personal experiences became an opportunity for her classmates to learn about several methods from trained instructors and experts in the field.
“Dr. Womack also helped establish an elective at UT Southwestern for medical students to learn from local fertility awareness educators.”
During medical school, Dr. Womack completed NaProTechnology medical consultant training through the St. Paul VI Institute in Omaha, Nebraska. She then completed her obstetrics and gynecology residency at the University of Texas at Austin and a two-year fellowship in complex minimally invasive gynecologic surgery at the University of Arizona College of Medicine. Her fellowship included training in advanced robotic surgery and procedures to treat conditions such as endometriosis and fibroids.
A Practice Built Around Medical and Surgical Care
In Dallas, Dr. Womack and her team care for women and men with fertility, hormonal, and metabolic health concerns. Her husband, Ryan, manages the business. A family medicine physician, another gynecologist, a physician assistant, and a nurse practitioner provide medical care alongside her surgical work.
Dr. Womack spends two days each week in the operating room, typically performing two major endometriosis surgeries per operating day. She also performs several smaller procedures each month, including hysteroscopies and selective hysterosalpingograms. This volume reflects the demand for clinicians trained in complex gynecologic surgery and a restorative approach to care.
Serving Patients While Protecting Family Time
Dr. Womack and her husband are raising four children under the age of 6 amid a demanding surgical practice, she has chosen to limit her clinical schedule and be selective about additional commitments.
She views her working hours as time her family has given her to serve patients. That understanding helps her use the time well and remain cognizant of how many people she can care for without taking more time away from home.
“She views her working hours as time her family has given her to serve patients. That understanding helps her use the time well.”
Dr. Womack’s path from Billings instructor and student organizer to restorative reproductive surgeon has been shaped by a desire to understand the conditions affecting her patients and expand the care available to them. At the FACTS virtual conference, she will share one part of that work with clinicians interested in the diagnostic and therapeutic possibilities of hysteroscopy.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Molly Franzonello, DNP, MHA, is a Certified Nurse Midwife (CNM) and Blog Editor at FACTS. Her clinical and editorial work focuses on fertility awareness, restorative reproductive medicine, and women’s health. Through these roles, she is committed to advancing patient-centered, evidence-based care, exploring systems and models that support this work, and expanding education on women’s fertility and health.
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