The Creighton Model FertilityCare System (Creighton Model, FertilityCare, CrMS) is a form of natural family planning which involves identifying the fertile period during a woman's menstrual cycle. The Creighton Model was developed by Thomas Hilgers, the founder and director of the Pope Paul VI Institute. This model, like the Billings ovulation method, is based on observations of cervical mucus to track fertility. Creighton can be used for both avoiding pregnancy and achieving pregnancy.
Conceptual basis Hilgers describes the Creighton Model as being based on "a standardized modification of the Billings ovulation method (BOM)", which was developed by John and Evelyn Billings in the 1960s.Creighton Model The Billingses issued a paper refuting the claim that the CrMS represents a standardization of the BOM. In their view, these concepts are two different methods and should not be seen as interchangeable.Evelyn Billings and Dr John J Billings, Some Clarifications Concerning NaProTECHNOLOGY and the Billings Ovulation Method
Effectiveness For avoiding pregnancy, the perfect-use failure rate of Creighton was 0.5%, which means that for each year that 1,000 couples using this method perfectly, that there are 5 unintended pregnancies. The typical-use failure rate, representing the fraction of couples using this method that actually had an unintended pregnancy, is reported as 3.2%.
For achieving pregnancy, no large clinical trials have been performed comparing ART and NaProTechnology. Only observational one-arm studies have been published so far. In the larger of these three studies, 75% of couples trying to conceive received additional hormonal stimulation such as clomiphene.
References
Further reading Hilgers, Thomas W., M.D., The NaPro Technology Revolution: unleashing the Power in a Woman's Cycle. New York: Beaufort Books, 2010. Print. Hilgers, Thomas W. The Medical & Surgical Practice of NaProTECHNOLOGY. Omaha: Pope Paul VI Institute, 2004. N. pag. Print. Moore, Keith L., T, V.N Persaud, and Mark G. Torchia. Before we are Born Essentials of Embryology and Birth Defects. 8th ed. Philadelphia: Elsevier Inc., 2013. Print. Unleashing the Power of a Woman's Cycle. Pope Paul VI Institute, 2006. Web. 14 Nov. 2012. <http://www.naprotechnology.com/index.html >. Jemelka, B. E., & Parker, D. W., & Mirkes, R. (2013). «NapProTECHNOLOGY and Conscientious OB/GYN Medicine». American Medical Association Journal of Ethics, 15. Hilgers, T. W. (2011). The New Women’s Health Science of NaProTECHNOLOGY. Archives of Perinatal Medicine, 17(4). Retrieved from https://web.archive.org/web/20150824051921/http://fertilitycare.net/documents/APM174-2-Hilgers.pdf
External links Creighton Model official site Pope Paul VI Institute for the Study of Human Reproduction Interview with Dr. Thomas Hilgers, Director of the Pope Paul VI Institute