'Making abortion safe': abortion and post-abortion care providers' experiences of stigma in Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Sierra Leone and Nigeria.

Background: Social stigma and the marginalisation of abortion care within medical settings can negatively affect abortion providers. While some research has evaluated stigma interventions in legally restrictive settings, little work has explored the experiences of healthcare professionals (HCPs) providing abortion and post-abortion care (PAC) outside the USA. This study, part of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists' 'Making Abortion Safe' programme, aimed to understand providers' experiences of abortion stigma in four African countries with restrictive legislation.

"When you provide abortion services, you are looked upon as a bad guy": experiences of abortion stigma by health providers in Nigeria.

Background: Abortion stigma as reported globally has been inadequately documented empirically in Nigeria, Africa's most populous country with a restrictive abortion law and a high rate of unsafe abortions.

Objective: The objectives of this study were to investigate the ways in which abortion stigma is experienced by Nigerian health professionals and how such experiences influence health professionals' practice of safe abortion and post-abortion care.

Methods: The study utilized qualitative research consisting of in-depth interviews with 10 abortion providers.

Exploring provider preference and provision of abortion methods and stigma: Secondary analysis of a United Kingdom provider survey.

Introduction: Method choice is an important component of quality abortion care and qualitative research suggests that abortion stigma can influence provider preference and provision of abortion methods. This study is the first to explore the relationships between abortion providers' method preferences, their provision of medication or instrumentation abortion or both methods, and abortion stigma.

Methods: We conducted secondary analysis of a survey of United Kingdom (UK) abortion providers (N = 172) to describe and compare providers' self-reported method preferences and provision.

A non-inferiority analysis of hemoglobin levels in postpartum IUD users in Bangladesh.

Objective: The objective of this study was to compare postpartum hemoglobin (Hb) between postpartum intrauterine device (PPIUD) and non-PPIUD users.

Methods: A sample of 3697 postpartum women (475 PPIUD users, 3222 non-PPIUD users) from 5 tertiary referral hospitals in Bangladesh were assessed at multiple time points between 6 weeks and 12 months postpartum. Non-inferiority linear regression analysis compared changes in Hb levels at 29-52 weeks postpartum between the two groups.

Evaluating the impact of female community health volunteer involvement in a postpartum family planning intervention in Nepal: A mixed-methods study at one-year post-intervention.

Introduction: This is a one-year post-intervention study following an initiative to provide orientation to female community health volunteers (FCHVs) on postpartum family planning in Nepal. In light of positive results in the earlier post-intervention study, this study was designed to provide a more long-term perspective on sustainability by assessing the effect at one-year post-intervention.

Methods: This mixed-methods study was conducted in January 2020 in Morang district, Nepal.

Economic Evaluation of Provision of Postpartum Intrauterine Device Services in Bangladesh and Tanzania.

Introduction: Postpartum family planning is an effective means of achieving improved health outcomes for women and children, especially in low- and middle-income settings. We assessed the cost-effectiveness of an immediate postpartum intrauterine device (PPIUD) initiative compared with standard practice in Bangladesh and Tanzania (which is no immediate postpartum family planning counseling or service provision) to inform resource allocation decisions for governments and donors.

Methods: A decision analysis was constructed to compare the PPIUD program with standard practice.