Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #109212

Dana Gelfeld Aronovich, MHS, Ali Karim, and David O'Brien. DELIVER Project, John Snow, Inc., 1616 N. Fort Myer Dr., 11th Floor, Arlington, VA 22209, (703) 528-7474, dana_aronovich@jsi.com

Continued population growth, combined with increasing demand for family planning (FP), means that the demand for contraceptives and services will continue to rise into the future. At the same time, national and international funding for FP programs is more constrained than ever. Policy makers and program managers must work even harder for contraceptive security (CS) and to ensure that the most disadvantaged populations gain or maintain access to critical FP services and commodities. While strengthening CS through policies that better segment the roles of the private sector, government, donors, and clients, the equitable distribution of limited public health resources across socioeconomic groups must be considered.To examine if CS contributes to equity of use of family planning services, this study analyzes the correlation between total scores from the CS Index and the disparity in contraceptive use by socioeconomic quintile using an asset-based wealth index. We will also analyze one indicator from the CS Index, public sector targeting, which presents the socioeconomic profile of public sector family planning users according to socioeconomic quintiles to assess equity in access and use of contraceptives. This paper will present the results of this analysis for approximately 20 countries. Strategies to improve resource allocation to ensure contraceptive security and equitable access to public sector resources for family planning services, along with country examples will also be presented. The results can be used to raise awareness about CS, to advocate for more equitable resource allocation by stakeholders, and to monitor future changes.

Learning Objectives:

• 1.Define contraceptive security.
• 2.Describe the relationship between CS and equity in family planning use.
• 3.Become familiar with the CS Index and with the wealth index as tools for raising awareness about CS and to ensure equitable access to FP services and contraceptives.
• 4.Describe several strategies that can address both CS and equity in FP use.

Keywords: Family Planning, Equal Access

Related Web page: www.deliver.jsi.com

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.