Publication Announcement

May 4, 2007

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INFO Launches Interactive Products About Continuing Contraceptive Needs of Clients

The INFO Project at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health's Center for Communication Programs released a comprehensive collection of interlinked resources Friday aimed at helping program managers and health-care providers meet clients' needs not only when they first choose family planning but also throughout their reproductive lives.

"In a continuing-client strategy, programs realign goals and activities to provide a continuum of care. This new focus can help programs serve all clients better and more efficiently—reducing discontinuation rates, preventing unintended pregnancies, and lowering levels of unmet need," writes Deepa Ramchandran, who prepared the latest Population Reports issue, "Developing a Continuing-Client Strategy." Ms. Ramchandran and Tara Sullivan co-authored a companion INFO Reports publication, "Measuring Success of a Continuing-Client Strategy."

The 28-page Population Reports issue includes resources, checklists, tools, and examples designed to help program managers and health providers develop an effective continuing-client strategy. A feature on a community-based distribution program in Mali and interviews with continuing clients in Indonesia family planning clinics succinctly illustrate the implications of the strategy from a client perspective. A summary table on "Managing Method Changes" gives guidance on how providers can help clients switch methods without exposing themselves to unintended pregnancies.

The companion 12-page INFO Reports issue offers program managers a quick reference to measure how well a continuing-client strategy is succeeding. It includes 24 key indicators organized into three areas: program readiness, quality of care, and reproductive health outcomes. By measuring these indicators, managers can track changes in program performance and fine-tune operations as needed to achieve the objectives of a continuing-client strategy.

Other interlinked resources concerning Continuing Clients include:

• A Q&A document listing 31 questions and answers for training or curriculum development
• A PowerPoint presentation based on the Population Reports issue which can be downloaded and used for teachers, students, and program managers.
• Focus On…Improving Hormonal Method Continuation: A Digest of Key Resources (INFO Reports)
• Global Health Technical Brief, Developing a Continuing-Client Strategy
• In the Spotlight-Developing a Continuing-Strategy (http://www.m-mc.org/) (forthcoming)

For more about INFO and other on-line sites and toolkits about IUDs, ending violence against women, injectables, integrating HIV and sexual and reproductive health, and more visit the INFO Web site at http://www.infoforhealth.org.

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