Adoption of Long Acting and Reversible Contraception (LARCs) in Nakuru County.
By Duke Momanyi,
Communications Associate
Gold Star Kenya
Family planning is one of the pillars of safe motherhood globally. Use of contraceptives greatly reduce pregnancy and its related risks such us unsafe abortion and unplanned pregnancies among women and girls of reproductive age.
There are different methods of preventing pregnancy. long-acting reversible contraceptives (LARCs) remains the most effective contraceptive method.
In Nakuru County, maternal mortality remains at unacceptably high levels of 375/100,000 live births as compared to 362/100,000 live births in Kenya. It has been ranked among the 15 high burden counties in Kenya leading with maternal mortality.
There is high unmet need for Family Planning at 18% compounded with inadequate knowledge on family planning methods among community members in the county.
In the health facilities, access to long acting and permanent methods due to inadequate infrastructure and technical capacity of health providers has been identified as a challenge.
USAID Tujenge Jamii conducted a LARCs training for 30 Health Care Workers (midwives) drawn from 11 sub-counties of Nakuru county trained in two clusters (Molo and Naivasha). The training was necessitated by the low uptake of long acting and reversible contraception in the county.
A participant demonstrating on contraceptive implants insertion in Naivasha LARCs Training
Skills and knowledge had been identified as a gap to service delivery during the supportive supervision exercise facilitated earlier to ascertain the baseline status of Reproductive Maternal New born Chilld and Adolescent Health (RMNCAH) services in the county; Family planning service uptake included. As a result, the trained participants will be equipped with knowledge and skills on insertion and removal of IUCD and implants. Subsequently the health care workers are expected to competently offer quality LARCs services and improve the uptake, reduce the missed opportunities for Family Planning during immediate post- partum as well as reduction of unmet FP needs.