The power of women's and men's Social Networks to catalyse normative and behavioural change: evaluation of an intervention addressing Unmet need for Family Planning in Benin.

BACKGROUND: In Benin, despite good knowledge and availability, modern contraceptive prevalence remains relatively low, and the unmet need for family planning is relatively high. This is partly due to insufficient attention to socio-normative barriers that influence need and method use. Applying social network theory, Tékponon Jikuagou (TJ) aims to reduce socio-normative barriers preventing modern contraceptive use in rural Benin. After community identification, TJ trains influential network actors who encourage critical dialogue about unmet need, family planning, gender, and other social norms within their networks, complemented by radio and services linkages. This paper evaluates TJ's effectiveness and how intervention components affect intermediate and primary FP outcomes. METHODS: We report findings from pre/post-intervention cross-sectional research with a comparison group conducted at baseline with 1,043 women and 1,030 men, and 14 months later at endline with 1,046 women and 1,045 men. Using sex-stratified models, we assessed balance across intervention and comparison groups on background characteristics using Pearson's chi-square tests of independence; performed bivariate tests of independence to assess differences between baseline to endline on intermediate outcomes and primary FP outcomes; used logistic regression to examine the effect of intervention components on intermediate and primary FP outcomes. RESULTS: Statistically significant improvements in primary outcomes: women's intentions to use modern contraception, achieve met need, and reduce perceived met need. The fourth primary outcome, actual use, showed substantial gains, although not statistically significant. Men's achievement of met FP need and reduced perceived met need were also statistically significant. Assessing intermediate outcomes at individual, couple, normative-network levels, TJ led to statistically significant increases in couple and network communication on fertility desires and family planning use and self-efficacy and confidence to access services. Both women and men showed significant shifts in the acceptability of discussing FP in public. Results for other indicators of norms change were inconsistent. CONCLUSIONS: An easy-to-implement, short-duration, gender-equitable social network intervention with a limited set of network actors, TJ effectively decreases social and normative barriers preventing women and men from seeking and using FP services. Results support the broader use of innovative social and behaviour change strategies that diffuse family planning ideas through social networks, diminish normative and communication barriers, and catalyse modern family planning use.

In many places with relatively low family planning use, insufficient program attention is paid to socio-normative barriers that influence need and method use. TJ catalyses women and men's social networks to spread new ideas and break communication and other social barriers that prevent women and men with unmet needs ­ people who wish to space their next birth but are not using effective family planning methods - from acting on their desires. A rigorous evaluation of the approach in rural Benin showed after only 14 months, TJ led to statistically significant improvements in intention to use contraception and met need. While showing substantial gains, women's use of contraception was not statistically significant.TJ increased women's and men's partner and network communication on fertility desires and family planning use and individual self-efficacy and confidence to act on intentions to address unmet need. The network influence on family planning use was equally significant. TJ led to new ideas within communities/social networks, including the perception that one's social networks approve of FP. Women and men who report that their network approves of FP were significantly more likely to discuss method use with their partners and seek services. TJ led to new perceptions that one's networks support FP.TJ represents an underused strategy for social and behaviour change. The social network approach encourages addressing the often-neglected social factors that stop women and men from acting on their desires to space births and use modern family planning methods.

Continued use of the Standard Days Method.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the long-term effectiveness and continuation of the Standard Days Method (SDM)®, a fertility awareness-based method of family planning that identifies Days 8-19 (inclusive) of the cycle as the fertile window. On these days users avoid unprotected sexual intercourse to prevent pregnancy. The method works best for women with cycles that are usually in the range of 26-32 days, which is an important reason for method discontinuation in the first year of use. The authors determine if this continues to be an issue in the second and third years of method use. METHODS: Participants in an earlier efficacy study (478 women in three countries) and method introduction studies (1181 women in four countries) were followed for 2 years beyond the original 1-year study period, to determine their continued use of the method, intended and unintended pregnancies, and reasons for discontinuation. Life-tables were used to approximate typical use pregnancy rates. RESULTS: The method continues to be effective in the second and third years of use, and compares favourably to other user-directed family planning methods. Women with no more than two cycles outside the 26-32-day range within a year are likely to continue having cycles within this range. CONCLUSIONS: Women who complete the first year of SDM use are likely to continue to be able to use the method successfully and effectively. The method presents a viable longer-term option for women who prefer this approach to family planning.

The role of the Standard Days Method in modern family planning services in developing countries.

BACKGROUND: The mere availability of family planning (FP) services is not sufficient to improve reproductive health; services must also be of adequate quality. The introduction of new contraceptive methods is a means of improving quality of care. The Standard Days Method (SDM) is a new fertility-awareness-based contraceptive method that has been successfully added to reproductive health care services around the world. CONTENT: Framed by the Bruce-Jain quality-of-care paradigm, this paper describes how the introduction of SDM in developing country settings can improve the six elements of quality while contributing to the intrinsic variety of available methods. SDM meets the needs of women and couples who opt not to use other modern methods. SDM providers are sensitised to the potential of fertility-awareness-based contraception as an appropriate choice for these clients. SDM requires the involvement of both partners and thus offers a natural entry point for providers to further explore partner communication, intimate partner violence, condoms, and HIV/STIs. CONCLUSION: SDM introduction broadens the range of FP methods available to couples in developing countries. SDM counselling presents an opportunity for FP providers to discuss important interpersonal and reproductive health issues with potential users.

Being strategic about contraceptive introduction: the experience of the Standard Days Method.

BACKGROUND: Many national and institutional family planning policies explicitly include fertility awareness-based methods among the method options that should be made available, but these methods are often not offered for a variety of reasons. After testing the efficacy of the Standard Days Method (SDM), which is a fertility awareness-based method that identifies Days 8-19 of the menstrual cycle as fertile for women with cycles lasting between 26 and 32 days, pilot studies were conducted to introduce it into programs. STUDY DESIGN: Through 14 pilot studies around the world, ministries of health, family planning associations and community development organizations introduced the SDM. Follow-up interviews with users and other data collection methodologies were used to track user characteristics and experiences. Supervision data and simulated clients assessed the effects on service delivery. RESULTS: The SDM appeals to a broad range of women throughout the world. Clients report using abstinence or condoms to manage the fertile days. Both men and women report high levels of satisfaction with the method. The cross-study first-year failure rate of 14.1 pregnancies per 100 woman-years of use is similar to typical-use rates found in the SDM efficacy trial. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the pilot studies offer guidance for scaling up service delivery of the SDM. Condom counseling can help many users manage the fertile window effectively. Because out-of-range cycles can lead to method failure, users must understand the importance of tracking cycle length and be willing to switch to another method when the SDM is contraindicated. Community providers can offer the method; within clinical settings, SDM counseling typically takes no more time than allowed in most program norms. Training providers to address alcohol use and gender-based violence improves SDM method use and contributes to better quality of care.

Cultivating men's interest in family planning in rural El Salvador.

A pilot project in rural El Salvador tested the integration of family planning into a water and sanitation program as a strategy for increasing male involvement in family planning decison making and use. The organizations involved posited that integrating family planning into a resource management and community development project would facilitate male involvement by diffusing information, by referring men and women to services, and by expanding method choice to include the new Standard Days Method through networks established around issues men cared about and were already involved in. This article examines data from a community-based household survey to assess the impact of the intervention and finds significant changes in contraceptive knowledge, attitudes, and behavior from baseline to endline. Because the differences between baseline and endline are greater than the differences between participants and nonparticipants at endline, the study demonstrates the power of informal networks for spreading information.