Elements of Family Planning Success

The intended audience for this handbook includes reproductive health (RH) program managers and government and NGO policy makers. It can be used in countries where ECPs are not currently available, as well as in contexts where the intention is to expand or mainstream access to existing ECP services. The handbook:

- Recognizes the different needs of diverse segments of the population, and places additional emphasis on targeting ECP services to “special groups,” which include rape survivors and adolescents.

This manual is intended to promote positive health outcomes for mothers, newborns, and infants by improving health workers' skills in fostering healthy timing and spacing of pregnancy (HTSP). It provides practical information and guidance on how to conduct a two-day training for primary health facility-based health workers in providing postpartum family planning information, education, and counselling, and in increasing postpartum women's access to all family planning (FP) methods and services.

This archive constitutes legacy of The ACQUIRE Project and has been designed as a searchable knowledge resource for the reproductive health and family planning (RH/FP) community. It contains a wide range of resources that were developed over the life of the project, at both the global and the country (field) levels. This content reflects the experience of programs from all regions and the outcomes of an extended global-field partnership dedicated to delivering more services to more people in more places.

This Population Reports issue is the flagship publication of the "Elements of Family Planning Success" initiative that identified the top 10 elements most important to the success of family planning programs in coordination with health care professionals from around the world. The report synthesizes online discussions about these elements and highlights program experiences, best practices, and evidence-based guidance derived from nearly six decades in international family planning.

This newsletter examines the unrealized potential of LAPMs to help family planning programs meet the needs of clients and improve public health. Although there are some challenges associated with the provision of LAPMs, these can be overcome by improving service delivery and educating potential clients. FHI and its partners have identified several ways to improve access to LAPM services, especially in sub-Saharan Africa where there is a high unmet need for these services.

This short publication offers clear suggestions for programme managers to address unmet need for family planning in the face of current political, financial, and health-systems challenges. It also comprises the 25th anniversary issue of Outlook, which since 1983, has synthesized the latest scientific research and evidence on effective reproductive health programming and made it available to programme managers, policymakers, health care providers, researchers, and educators around the world.

The Medical eligibility criteria for contraceptive use – one of the four cornerstones of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) evidence-based family planning guidance – provides evidence-based recommendations on whether an individual can safely use a contraceptive method. This guideline is intended for use by policy-makers, programme managers, and the scientific community in the preparation of national family planning/sexual and reproductive health programmes for delivery of contraceptives.

You are cordially invited to explore and utilize the new Resource Package for Family Planning and Beyond: The ACQUIRE Project Digital Archive at http://www.acquireproject.org/archive

Produced by Peru's Ministry of Health with support from the USAID | Health Policy Initiative, Task Order 1 in Peru, the objective of this publication is to help improve the quality of reproductive health (RH) services by strengthening the patient-provider relationship through cultural adaptation and counseling. The manual establishes technical guidelines for taking cultural customs, practices, and expectations into consideration when implementing RH counseling in primary healthcare facilities.

You, Your Life, Your Dreams is a book that helps young people make informed decisions about their sexual lives. Easy to read and visually attractive, it provides accessible, objective, and urgently-needed information on a broad range of sexual and reproductive health issues.