Family planning:
Family planning empowers individuals and couples to make informed decisions about their
reproductive health, including the number and spacing of children they wish to have.
It encompasses a range of methods, including contraception, infertility treatment, and education
about reproductive health. Family planning aims to improve maternal and child health, reduce
unintended pregnancies, and promote overall well-being.
Key Aspects:-
Contraception –
Providing access to and information about various contraceptive methods, such as pills, IUDs,
condoms, and sterilization, to prevent unintended pregnancies.
Infertility treatment:-
Offering access to services and support for individuals and couples facing challenges in
conceiving.
Reproductive health education:-
1. Providing comprehensive information about reproductive health, including family planning
options, safe sex practices, and the importance of spacing pregnancies.
2.
Informed decision making:-
Empowering individuals to make choices about their reproductive health based on their own
circumstances and preferences.
Spacing of pregnancy
Encouraging healthy spacing between pregnancies to improve maternal and child health
outcomes.
3. Reduced unintended pregnancies:
Helps individuals and couples avoid unwanted pregnancies, leading to fewer unsafe
abortions and reduced strain on healthcare systems.
4. Empowerment and well-being:
Enables women to pursue education, careers, and other opportunities, contributing to their
overall well-being and that of their families.
5. Economic benefits:
Allows families to better manage resources and plan for the future, potentially leading to
improved economic stability
Impact :-
Use of contraception prevents pregnancy-related health risks for women, especially for
adolescent girls, and when expressed in terms of interbirth intervals, children born within 2
years of an elder sibling have a 60% increased risk of infant death, and those born within 2–3
years a 10% increased risk, compared with those born after an interval of 3 years or lomger .
offers a range of potential non-health benefits that encompass expanded education
opportunities and empowerment for women, and sustainable population growth and
economic development for countries.
The number of women desiring to use family planning has increased markedly over the past
two decades, from 900 million in 2000 to nearly 1.1 billion in 2021 (1).
The proportion of women of reproductive age (aged 15–49 years) who have their need for
family planning satisfied with modern methods (SDG indicator 3.7.1) is 77.5% globally in 2022,
a 10% increase since 1990 (67%)
Barriers:-
The proportion of women of reproductive age (aged 15–49 years) who have their need for
family planning satisfied with modern methods (SDG indicator 3.7.1) is 77.5% globally in 2022,
an increase of 10 percentage points since 1990 (67%) (2). Reasons for this slow increase
include limited choice of methods; limited access to services, particularly among young,
poorer and unmarried people; fear or experience of side-effects; cultural or religious
opposition; poor quality of available services; users’ and providers’ bias against some
methods; and gender-based barriers to accessing services
Purpose:-
There are multiple benefits to family planning including spacing births for healthier pregnancies,
thus decreasing risks of maternal morbidity, fetal prematurity and low birth. There is also a potential
positive impact on the individual's social and economic advancement, as raising a child requires
significant amounts of resources: time,[11] social, financial,[12] and environmental.[13] Planning can help
assure that resources are available.
There is no clear social impact case for or against conceiving a child. Individually, for most
people,[15] bearing a child or not has no measurable impact on personal well-being. A review of the
economic literature on life satisfaction shows that certain groups of people are much happier
without children:
6. Single parents
7. Fathers who both work and raise the children equally
8. Singles
9. The divorced
10. The poor
11. Those whose children are older than three
12. Those whose children are sick[16]
However, both adoptees and the adopters report that they are happier after adoption
Method :-
13. Oral Contraceptive Pills: Available as combined pills (containing estrogen and progestin) or
progestin-only pills (mini-pills).
14. Injectable Contraceptives: Such as DMPA (Antara), which provides long-acting protection.
15. Implants: Small, matchstick-sized rods inserted under the skin, providing long-term
contraception.
16. Patches and Vaginal Rings: These methods deliver hormones through the skin or vagina.
Barriers
17. Condoms (Nirodh): Male condoms are a widely available barrier method.
18. Intrauterine Devices (IUDs): Devices inserted into the uterus, including copper IUDs and
hormonal IUDs.
19. Diaphragms and Cervical Caps: Barrier devices that cover the cervix.
20. Natural Family Planning:
Fertility Awareness Methods: Involves tracking a woman's menstrual cycle to identify fertile periods and
abstain from intercourse or use barrier methods during those times.
21. Emergency Contraception:
1. Emergency Contraceptive Pills: Can be taken after unprotected sex to prevent pregnancy.
2. Copper IUD: Can be inserted as emergency contraception within a few days of unprotected
sex.
Limiting Methods (Permanent):
22. Female Sterilization:
1. Tubal Ligation: A surgical procedure that blocks or قطعthe fallopian tubes.
23. Male Sterilization:
1. Vasectomy: A surgical procedure that blocks or cuts the vas deferens.
The most common side effects are spotting or bleeding between periods (this is more common with
progestin-only pills), sore breasts, nausea, or headaches. But these usually go away after 2 or 3 months,
and they don't happen to everyone who takes the pill. Birth control shouldn't make you feel sick or
uncomfortable.
24. Availability and access: Certain methods may not be available or accessible in all settings.
25. Counseling and education: Proper counseling and education are vital for effective and safe use
of any family planning method.
WHO response
Achieving universal access and the realization of sexual and reproductive health services will be
essential to fulfil the pledge of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development that “no one will be
left behind”. It will require intensified support for contraceptive services, including through the
implementation of effective government policies and programmes.
WHO is working to promote contraception by producing evidence-based guidelines on safety and
service delivery of contraceptive methods and on ensuring human rights in contraceptive
programmes. WHO assists countries to adapt and implement these tools to strengthen
contraceptive policies and programmes. Additionally, WHO participates in developing new
contraceptive technologies to and leads and conducts implementation research for expanding
access to and strengthening delivery contraceptive information and service.
Injustice and coerecive interference with family planning:-
Forced sterilization
Compulsory or forced sterilization programs or government policy attempt to force people to undergo
surgical sterilization without their freely given consent. People from marginalized communities are at
most risk of forced sterilization.[48] Forced sterilization has occurred in recent years in Eastern Europe
(against Roma women),[48][49] and in Peru (during the 1990s against indigenous women). [50] China's one-
child policy was intended to limit the rise in population numbers, but in some situations involved forced
sterilisation.
Sexual violence:-
Rape can result in a pregnancy. Rape can occur in a variety of situations, including war rape, forced
prostitution, marital rape, and more.
Rape is traumatic, and can cause many difficulties, especially for the mother. This can include the
decision on whether or not to go through with abortion, adoption, or to just raise the child, all of which
can affect the mother psychologically. Plus, the mother would be subject to medical treatments, such as
testing for any Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs) and checking for overall well-being and mental,
emotiona
