Ricardo Vernon, PhD, FRONTIERS Program, Population Council, Panzacola 62 - 102, Col. Villa Coyoacán, Mexico City, 04000, Mexico, (52)(55) 5999-8650, rvernon@popcouncil.org.mx, Erica Palenque, BA, PROCOSI, Av. 20 de Octubre 2164, La Paz, Bolivia, and Fernando Gonzales, MD, Population Council, Bolivia, Fernando Guachalla 342, Edificio Victor, Piso 3, La Paz, Bolivia.

PROCOSI, a network of Bolivian NGOs, conducted 2,122 exit interviews and 1,925 household interviews of clients of health clinics in rural and semi-urban areas to assess their use of reproductive health services and the type or relationship they had with their partners. Variables explored related to partner dynamics included decision-making in the use of resources, communications and decision making regarding family size and contraception, degree of control sought by the male over the female partner, communication regarding sexual pleasure and intimate partner violence, among others. In this paper, we compare women that have traditional relationships with large power differentials with women who have more modern or autonomous relationships in terms of their use and need of services.

Learning Objectives:

• To learn how to measure partner dynamics through a multi-dimensional scale, and how gender inequalities affect health outcomes in less developed countries.

Keywords: Gender, Family Planning

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.