DiMPA Network

PSP-One is currently operating a private provider network of over 1,000 providers in northern India to increase use of injectable contraceptives. The network consists of OB/GYNs and general practitioners trained to provide quality family planning services with a focus on the depot-medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA) 3-month injectable.

Since its inception, the DiMPA network has been a dynamic program, developed to change its focus and direction as the environment changed as a result of the interventions. Yet throughout the life of the project, the basic goals have remained the same: to create awareness about DMPA as a safe and effective method of contraception; to increase access to and use of DMPA through the private health sector by establishing a network; and to promote correct use and compliance through sustained high quality of service.

The program components include:

  • Training providers with an evidence based approach
  • Voluntary provider enrollment in the DiMPA network to increase access to DMPA at an affordable price point
  • Employing accessible and multiple communication channels to create awareness about DMPA
  • Monitoring and evaluating the program for increased use and knowledge and sustained quality of care

The necessity of promoting DMPA through a private sector network was readily apparent early in the project. Despite the wide acceptance and proven safety of the product worldwide, and even the backing of India’s own regulating agency, the government of India did not (and still does not) include DMPA in the national family planning basket of goods, limiting its availability to the private sector. Additionally, activist groups in India firmly believed that injectables were detrimental to women's health, contending that use causes infertility, the onset on menopause, the build up of bad blood in the body, cancer, and loss of bone density. As a result, a broad base of support was needed within the medical community to combat these negative voices. Organizing providers into the network provided this base and enabled the program to obtain the support of the Federation of Obstetric and Gynecological Society of India (FOGSI), who issued a consensus statement approving DMPA as a safe and effective method and encouraged its 18,000 members to promote the product within the WHO guidelines.

Yet despite these challenges, the DiMPA Network has thrived. When the pilot began the network consisted of only 105 providers in 3 towns and today it covers 45 towns with 1,150 providers. Additionally, attitudes towards injectables have improved dramatically, which represents a major step forward in efforts to increase the contraceptive prevalence rate. Finally, PSP-One’s experience in managing the network and implementing a wide array of interventions has greatly contributed to the body of knowledge about the use of Networks for family planning and reproductive health.