Family Planning

Women's Experiences With Family Planning Under COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional, Interactive Voice Response Survey in Malawi, Nepal, Niger, and Uganda.

Aurélie Brunie
Gwyneth Austin
Jamie Arkin
Samantha Archie
Dinah Amongin
Rawlance Ndejjo
Saujanya Acharya
Basant Thapa
Sarah Brittingham
Grace McLain
Philip Mkandawire
Maimouna Hallidou Doudou
Ndola Prata
2022

Introduction: We conducted an assessment in Malawi, Nepal, Niger, and Uganda to document access-related reasons for not using contraceptive methods during the COVID-19 pandemic that led to unintended pregnancies, describe use of modern contraception among women in potential need of contraception compared to before the pandemic, examine method choice, and describe barriers to contraceptive access and use.

Methods: Between December 2020 and May 2021, we conducted an opt-in phone survey with 21,692 women, followed by an outbound survey with 5,124 women...

Client, provider, and visit factors associated with quality in contraceptive counseling in Mexico: an exploratory cross-sectional analysis

Kay Walker
Ndola Prata
Maureen Lahiff
Ximena Quintero
Kelsey Holt
2021
Background

Monitoring clients’ experiences with contraceptive care is vital to inform quality improvement efforts and ensure fulfillment of individuals’ human rights. The Quality of Contraceptive Counseling (QCC) Scale is a previously validated scale that comprehensively measures individuals’ experiences receiving counseling in three subscales: Information Exchange, Interpersonal Relationship, and Disrespect and Abuse. We sought to better understand the correlation of client, provider, and visit factors with client-reported quality of contraceptive counseling in the public sector in two...

Family Sex Communication, Parental Acculturation, and Religiosity Among Arab American Young Adults

Nazineen Kandahari
Ndola Prata
Maureen Lahiff
Sarah Abboud
2023

Family sex communication is critical to promoting the development of healthy sexualities among young people and has yet to be studied among Arab Americans. We sought to (1) describe religiosity, perceived parental acculturation, and family sex communication among Arab American young adults, and (2) examine the association between parental acculturation and family sex communication, and whether it is mediated by religiosity or gender. We conducted a cross-sectional quantitative study. Participants (N = 100) were recruited via purposive sampling. Data were collected by in-person and...

Defining Collective Priorities: Research and Learning Agendas for Family Planning Across 6 Countries

Sarah Brittingham
Trinity Zan
Kouakou Hyacinthe Andoh
Kabita Aryal
Marcos Chissano
Olivia Ferguson
Jean Christophe Fotso
Issoufa Harou
Sangita Khatri
Kadidiatou Raïssa Kourouma
Suzanne N Kiwanuka
Bibek Kumar Lal
Alda Mahumana Govo
Morrisa Malkin
Philip Mkandawire
Mary Mulombe Phiri
Charles Olaro
Ndola Prata
Shannon Pryor
Bhagawan Shrestha
Basant Thapa
Fatoumata Traoré Touré
2023

Evidence should be the foundation for a well-designed family planning (FP) program, but existing evidence is rarely aligned with and/or synthesized to speak directly to FP programmatic needs. Based on our experience cocreating FP research and learning agendas (FP RLAs) in Côte d’Ivoire, Malawi, Mozambique, Nepal, Niger, and Uganda, we argue that FP RLAs can drive the production of coordinated research that aligns with national priorities.

To cocreate FP RLAs, stakeholders across 6 countries conducted desk reviews of 349 documents and 106 key informant interviews, organized...

Mixed-methods, cross-sectional assessment of a client-facing, family planning counseling chatbot in Côte d’Ivoire

Kristen M Little
Ndola Prata
Kpebo Djoukou Olga Denise
Nadia Tefouet
Jean Christophe Fotso
Alexandra Angel
Sarah Brittingham
Paul Bouanchaud
Amadou Donapoho Soro
Lisa Dulli
2024

Evidence is limited about the feasibility, acceptability and effects on family planning (FP) intentions of digital tools, such as chatbots. To help fill this gap, we assessed a chatbot in Côte d’Ivoire with three components: (i) menstrual health information; (ii) FP information and (iii) method recommendations and referrals. We conducted a cross-sectional study to describe user characteristics and perceptions of chatbot usability, content and relevance, and perceived effects on FP-related self-efficacy. We used a mixed-methods approach, including an online survey and in-depth...

“Africans, we know how to adapt indeed”: Adaptations to family planning and reproductive health services in humanitarian settings in Nigeria during the COVID-19 pandemic

Evens E
Ambrose A
Bello B
Murray K
Tefouet N
Fatusi A
Nwagbara B
Riungu M
Maji T
Khamofu H
Fotso JC
Prata N
2024

On March 30, 2020, the Government of Nigeria implemented its first COVID-19 related lockdown. We worked with two humanitarian projects in Nigeria, the Integrated Humanitarian Assistance to Northeast Nigeria (IHANN II) in Borno State and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees South-South Health and Nutrition Intervention (UNHCR-SS-HNIR) for Cameroon Refugees and vulnerable populations in Cross River State, to document the programmatic adaptations to Family Planning/Reproductive Health (FP/RH) services in response to COVID-19 and identify successes and challenges of those...

Bone mineral density changes during use of progestin-only contraceptives: a rapid review of recent evidence.

Blake Erhardt-Ohren
Ndola Prata
Scott Rosenblum
2025
Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this paper is to consolidate existing evidence and identify knowledge and research gaps on the bone health effects of progestin-only oral contraception, injectables, hormonal intrauterine devices, and implants. implementation.

Data sources: We searched PubMed, CINAHL, Web of Science, and The Cochrane Library for conference abstracts, original research articles, systematic reviews, and meta-analyses published between 05 May 2012 and 31 August 2023.

Study eligibility criteria: We limited...

Using Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) to Access Google Data and Gain Insights Into Searches on Birth Control in Louisiana and Mississippi, 2014-2018: Infoveillance Study

Ndola Prata
Karen Weidert
Anne Zepecki
Elina Yon
Elizabeth Pleasants
Petrice Sams-Abiodun
Sylvia Guendelman
2021

Background: It is now common to search for health information online. A 2013 Pew Research Center survey found that 77% of online health seekers began their query at a search engine. The widespread use of online health information seeking also applies to women’s reproductive health. Despite online interest in birth control, not much is known about related interests and concerns reflected in the search terms in the United States.

Objective: In this study, we identify the top search terms on Google related to birth control in Louisiana and Mississippi and compare those results to the...

Cost of providing injectable contraceptives through a community-based social marketing program in Tigray, Ethiopia

Ndola Prata
Janelle Downing
Suzanne Bell
Karen Weidert
Hagos Godefay
Amanuel Gessessew
2016
Objective

To provide a cost analysis of an injectable contraceptive program combining community-based distribution and social marketing in Tigray, Ethiopia.

Methods

We conducted a cost analysis, modeling the costs and programmatic outcomes of the program’s initial implementation in 3 districts of Tigray, Ethiopia. Costs were estimated from a review of program expense records, invoices, and interviews with health workers. Programmatic outcomes include number of injections and couple-year of protection (CYP) provided. We performed a sensitivity analysis on the average number of...

Professor Ndola Prata's exceptional undergraduate students from the PH181 course Poverty and Population this fall semester have communicated with their United States representatives!

December 18, 2025

This fall 2025 semester Professor Ndola Prata has six exceptional undergraduate students from the PH181 course Poverty and Population who have communicated with their United States representatives, expressing their strong arguments for contraceptives as foreign aid for USAID, comprehensive sex education in public schools, abortion pills, community protection from hunger and climate stress, food security and women's access to reproductive care. These students are Rishabh Ganesh Balamitran, Raka Bose, Alyssa Chan, Rosalie Güitrón,...