Integrating postpartum IUD counselling and insertion into routine maternity care in Nepal: Assessing trends over time.

To meet the postpartum family planning (PPFP) needs of women in Nepal, an intervention was launched to integrate PPFP counselling and postpartum IUD (PPIUD) insertion into maternity care. Women delivering in study hospitals over a period of 18 months were interviewed at the time of delivery and at 15 months following the end of the study enrollment period to assess if the impact of the intervention observed at the end of the study was maintained. Data were collected prior to the intervention, at the middle month of the intervention roll out, at the end of the enrollment period and 15 months after the end of the enrollment period.

Addressing Men's Health Needs in Nepal: An Ignored Public and Clinical Health Concern.

Despite men's poorer outcomes than women in many health issues such as life expectancy, ischemic heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, HIV/AIDS, traffic-related injuries, drug and alcohol abuse, etc, Nepal's health care strategy does not have an adequately focused program to address men's health needs. This comment aims to illustrate the differences in selected health indicators between men and women and suggest Nepal's health sector strategy 2022-2030 should address to advance men's health needs. Keywords: Health policy; men's health; Nepal.

Does family planning counseling reduce unmet need for modern contraception among postpartum women: Evidence from a stepped-wedge cluster randomized trial in Nepal.

Background: Postpartum women have high rates of unmet need for modern contraception in the two years following birth in Nepal. We assessed whether providing contraceptive counseling during pregnancy and/or prior to discharge from the hospital for birth or after discharge from the hospital for birth was associated with reduced postpartum unmet need in Nepal.

Methods: We used data from a larger a stepped-wedge, cluster randomized trial, including contraceptive counselling in six tertiary hospitals.

Provider and Women Characteristics as Risk Factors for Postpartum Copper IUD Expulsion and Discontinuation in Nepal.

Context: Providers' and women's characteristics are associated with postpartum copper IUD (PPIUD) outcomes, but the relationship between providers' level of experience and PPIUD expulsion and discontinuation has not been established.

Methods: Data on 1,232 women and 118 providers who took part in a randomized trial of a PPIUD counselling and provision intervention in Nepal between 2015 and 2017 were used to identify associations between providers' and women's characteristics and PPIUD outcomes. Multinomial logistic regression models were used to estimate PPIUD expulsion and discontinuation risks at two years after insertion.

Potential Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Sexual and Reproductive Health in Nepal.

The national lockdown imposed in Nepal as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic is having indirect consequences on sexual and reproductive (SRH) in Nepal. Although the Government of Nepal and partners have committed to ensuring the continuity of SRH services during the pandemic, this comment aims to illustrate the potential impacts to SRH if these commitments are not met. Keywords: COVID-19; Nepal; reproductive health; sexual health.