Family planning programs have an excellent opportunity to promote respect for women. Unfortunately, some programs have missed that opportunity—perhaps because program personnel share widespread social attitudes that denigrate women, because a program focuses on enrolling more clients rather than meeting clients' needs, because personnel are simply not aware that courtesy is important, or because service providers have too little time for each client.

Program managers can encourage respect for clients in several ways:

• Ensure informed choice. Programs that help women make their own informed choices about their fertility show respect for their clients' right and ability to make decisions. To ensure informed choice, managers can see that clients are (1) offered a choice of methods, (2) given the information they want about each method, and (3) allowed to choose the method that they want, provided there is no medical reason to withhold it (67).
• Communicate respectfully. All personnel, no matter what their function, can act politely and in a respectful, friendly manner with all clients at all times. Program personnel demonstrate their respect for clients by paying attention to what clients say, answering their questions fully, never belittling their concerns and questions, and understanding and honoring their clients wishes (294, 344). Also, programs must be sensitive to clients' modesty and preserve client-provider confidentiality (186).
• Train staff. Program managers can train staff to think of clients' needs and to communicate with clients. Staff also can learn how to communicate respect.
• Reward respect. Managers can reward personnel who treat female clients respectfully. They can measure the success of programs and providers by client satisfaction rather than just by numbers of clients. To measure client satisfaction, managers can survey clients about the care that they received (see Chapter 7.3 Involving Clients in Program Design). Whether clients return for further services when needed also indicates whether they are satisfied.
• Improve staff morale. Family planning personnel may treat clients poorly if personnel themselves have to work with insufficient time, supplies, space, or pay. If so, managers can acknowledge the problems, remedy them if possible, and at the same time make clear that the staff's frustrations are not an excuse for treating clients disrespectfully. Also, public promotion that enhances the image of providers, along with training, improves morale and inspires staff to live up to their new image (259).
• Set an example. Managers are role-models for other program personnel. If they do not treat clients and staff with respect, they cannot expect their staff to do so.

People who are treated with respect develop self-respect. Brief contacts with a family planning program are not likely to revolutionize women's lives. Still, for some women, contact with high-quality family planning services can be a start; for others, a step forward; and perhaps for a few, a big step. A young mother in Chile credited a family planning service with improving her self-esteem: "I am valuing myself more. I am realizing that I am really worth something. I am a person, and I should take care of myself..." (344).