Understanding your body matters: Effects of an entertainment-education serial radio drama on fertility awareness in Rwanda.

Given widespread misunderstanding of pregnancy risk, awareness of one's fertility has the potential to influence sexual and reproductive health behaviors. This mixed-methods study examined the impact of a serial radio drama in Rwanda, Impano n'Impamba, on fertility awareness and other factors related to family planning uptake by comparing listeners and non-listeners in a nationally representative household survey (n = 1477) and analyzing in-depth interviews with 32 listeners. Listeners had higher fertility awareness than non-listeners for key concepts, including the menstrual cycle, onset of fertility, and postpartum pregnancy risk.

Assessing the Competency and Acceptability of Community Health Worker Provision of Standard Days Method® in Family Planning Services in Gisagara District, Rwanda.

This study assesses the competency and acceptability of community-based provision of Standard Days Method (SDM) to first-time users in Rwanda. The national strategy equips community health workers (CHWs) to resupply pills, injectables and condoms to existing clients. With the aim of expanding access, SDM provision to first-time users was added to the method mix in Gisagara district and assessed with a 12 month prospective, mixed methods study.

Systems approach to monitoring and evaluation guides scale up of the Standard Days Method of family planning in Rwanda.

There is no guarantee that a successful pilot program introducing a reproductive health innovation can also be expanded successfully to the national or regional level, because the scaling-up process is complex and multilayered. This article describes how a successful pilot program to integrate the Standard Days Method (SDM) of family planning into existing Ministry of Health services was scaled up nationally in Rwanda. Much of the success of the scale-up effort was due to systematic use of monitoring and evaluation (M&E) data from several sources to make midcourse corrections.

Assessing the effect of introducing a new method into family planning programs in India, Peru, and Rwanda.

Background: Introducing a new method into family planning programs requires careful attention to ensure it meets an actual need and has a positive effect on program goals. The Standard Days Method® is a fertility awareness-based method of family planning that is being introduced into family planning programs in countries around the world. It is different from other methods offered by programs, and may bring new couples into family planning, and increase contraceptive prevalence.

Introducing the standard days method: expanding family planning options in Rwanda.

The Standard Days Method is a simple fertility awareness-based method of family planning that helps women identify the days each cycle when they are most likely to conceive. Couples who wish to prevent pregnancy avoid unprotected intercourse on these days. The method was introduced in 13 sites in Rwanda, a nation with a high level of unmet need for family planning.

Quality of delivery of the Standard Days Method as compared with contraceptive pills in Rwanda.

Background And Methodology: Replicating a Peruvian study, this research introduced the Standard Days Method (SDM) into Rwanda Ministry of Health clinics and evaluated client counselling on the new method against that given for contraceptive pills. Providers received technical reinforcement concerning established methods in addition to SDM training. To evaluate their quality of care, simulated clients implemented a service test in visits to 20 clinics.