DMPA-SC: Mrs. Akinwale believed that by constantly wearing a fetish ring on her finger she would avoid getting pregnant. She was introduced to this superstitious method of contraception during the early days of her marriage. After 4 years, the ring was misplaced, and getting a replacement was difficult as she could not locate the medicine woman. Due to fears of unwanted pregnancy, she stopped engaging freely in sexual activity with her husband.
“I am not afraid of unplanned pregnancy anymore, my mind is now at rest, I can return to my normal life, there is nothing to fear again.”
Mr. Akinwale spoke to his wife about considering taking up a modern FP method as they have 3 children and are satisfied. Fortunately, the Resilient and Accelerated Scale-up of DMPA-SC in Nigeria (RASuDiN) community volunteers approached Mrs. Akinwale during a community outreach to educate her on the available modern FP methods, and their benefits.
Upon interacting with community volunteers, he made the choice to take up the method as community-oriented resource persons were available to support uptake. “I was convinced, and I adopted the DMPA-SC the same day as I had the full support of my husband.”
The use of this easy-to-use injectable contraceptive means that Mrs. Akinwale now has time to pursue personal goals like returning to school and she no longer has fears of an unplanned pregnancy.
According to her, “I am not afraid of unplanned pregnancy anymore, my mind is now at rest, I can return to my normal life, there is nothing to fear again’. Since I started using it, I have been able to create time to go back to school…”
Never before in history have women been able to give themselves a simple injection every few months to prevent pregnancy—the final, and possibly biggest, reason why DMPA-SC is so appealing. By putting the power of protection directly in women’s hands, self-injection with DMPA-SC has the potential to reduce access-related barriers for women, increase contraceptive continuation rates, and enhance women’s autonomy.
DMPA-SC is so small, light, and easy to use that any trained person can administer it, including community health workers, pharmacists, and even women themselves through self-injection. This unique design is helping make injectable contraception available in remote locations, closer to where women live.
In other words, this product reduces the demands on busy health workers and makes it easier for women who don’t live near a health facility or clinic to use a contraceptive of their choice. PATH is leading the DMPA-SC Access Collaborative with our partners John Snow, Inc. to help make that happen in as many countries as possible.
The Resilient and Accelerated Scale-up of DMPA-SC in Nigeria (RASuDiN) project is aimed at increasing the use, acceptance, availability, and accessibility of DMPA-SC/SI as a family planning method within a broader contraceptive method mix among women of reproductive age in Nigeria. Read more about RASuDiN here
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