Family planning: Group’s Intervention Increases Uptake In Osogbo LG

The intervention of a reproductive health solutions group, The Challenge Initiative (TCI), has significantly impacted family planning in Osogbo Local Government Area of Osun State, records have shown, increasing uptake by about 55 percent since January.

 

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Beatrice Iyanda, Health Promotion Officer at Osogbo Local Government Primary Health Care (PHC) center, disclosed this on Wednesday during a family planning neighborhood campaign in Oke-Baale area of Osogbo.

 

Iyanda who noted that prior to TCI’s intervention, family planning acceptability was about 10 percent, said it picked up with TCI’S activities which prioritizes community education driven towards making informed choices.

 

She said: “Due to TCI’s assistance, our family planning activities have improved, allowing us to educate and mobilise the community to make informed choices.

 

“Their support has been valuable in helping us address myths and misconceptions surrounding family planning. We are saying TCI should not leave Osun now, they should wait for us to clear the remaining 45% left behind so that it will be 100%.

 

 

Iyanda identified religion as a major challenge to family planning acceptability in the area, adding that recent successes recorded were due to educative engagements with religious leaders and men in the area.

 

The medical expert confirmed that they had since been engaging religious leaders and men as the head of family on the need to promote child spacing and maternal health.

 

“This community is religiously dominated and their belief is that they should have as many children as possible. We try atimes to involve the husband, to let him understand the importance of FP. 

 

“We also reach out to the religious leaders, those that are knowledgeable, literate, we talk to them and after the talk, some of the husbands have been coming to the facility with their wives.”

 

“However, misconceptions persist, with some men fearing that certain family planning methods might have negative side effects.

 

“To encourage more men to participate in family planning, TCI introduced “GO Cards” that provide free services, she said.

 

Kehinde Aliu, a mobilizer for family planning, said they went on the field regularly to sensitise residents on the need to adopt family planning and also intimate them of the benefits accruable.

 

 

She said they visited unconventional places like parties, clubs and ethnic gatherings among others to disseminate family planning message, adding that encouraging feedbacks were often received at such events.

 

“We can go to parties, meetings, and other places to campaign about FP.

 

“When we get there, we talk to them and anybody that shows interest would be given a “GO Card”, with the card, they know the facility to go and access the FP”, she said.

 

Family planning, according to experts, is the informed decision taken by individuals and couples on the number of children they want to have and how to adequately space them to enhance child and maternal health.