Implementing best practices for reproductive health care services to males 25 and over in family planning settings

There has been little focus on male reproductive health for men 25 + among lower income men. Clinics face significant challenges serving this population; only 14% of men aged 15 to 49 make a reproductive health visit annually.

In 2006, the California Family Health Council (CFHC) funded 11 programs throughout California to 1) develop a best practices model for replicating male services programs; 2) provide comprehensive reproductive health programs for men including education, information and clinical services; 3) increase access to these services for hard-to-reach, high-risk populations such as migrant workers and low-income men. CFHC has adopted the Guidelines for Male Sexual and Reproductive Health from Region II of the Title X program at Males Program sites to create a best practices model of reproductive health care delivery. This model will be made available to other sites through California with the goals of improving the quality of care delivered and increasing the number of men served at Title X clinics in California.

Chart abstraction tools, developed according to the Region II Guidelines, used CFHC's provider-focused evaluation model (PFEM) where all participating clinics had the opportunity to provide feedback about data collection tools, processes, and outcomes in the best practices model. Clinics' use of the tools will be monitored and data collected during June through August of 2007.

In conclusion, best practices models developed in other sites/regions can be adapted in other areas, strengthening the replicability of the models and increasing the diffusion of best practices for male reproductive health.