Oral

This session focuses on strategies to increase access to FP/RH services in developing countries. The panel presents evidence from Romania, Peru, Egypt, and Indonesia. One presentation describes how local public-private partnerships in Romania increased equity to access FP/RH services by pooling resources across agencies, increasing providers’ capacity to communicate, tailoring services to client preferences, developing culturally appropriate inter-personal communication and promoting policy change. A second presentation includes an analysis to understand how to improve access to FP among the rural poor in Peru and description of three pro-poor strategies that resulted. A paper on Egypt addresses the process of promoting contraceptive security in Egypt at started in 2003 in response to USAID’s intention to phase out contraceptive support. A fourth paper asks if the strategy of increasing the private sector really lowers dependency on donors. The presentation focuses on the need to distinguish between the commercial and non-commercial providers that make up the private sector.

Session Objectives: • Apply the process of pooling resources across health and social sectors. • Articulate a strategy for policy change at local level to reduce barriers to accessing health services, including developing Local Partnerships. • To share lessons about policy interventions at local, regional and central levels of government to improve access to FP among the poor. • Mobilze political support and resources for meeting contraceptive security goal and apply an evidence-based and multisectoral process of strategic planning and policymaking. • Articulate the steps needed to determine whether a provider is covering direct costs. • Describe the information needed to determine whether a provider is commercial or not commercial and articulate why this is important.

CE Credits: CME, Health Education (CHES), Nursing