The systematic review was done to synthesize the evidence on the comparative effectiveness of different counseling strategies for modern contraception on contraceptive behavior and satisfaction and to examine their advantages and disadvantages.
Six electronic databases were searched to identify publications comparing two or more contraceptive counseling strategies and reporting quantitative results on contraceptive use, uptake, continuation or switching, or client satisfaction.
63 publications met the inclusion criteria to be part of this study. There was substantial heterogeneity in study settings, interventions, and outcome measures. Interventions targeting women initiating a method tended to show positive effects on contraceptive continuation. In contrast, the majority of studies of provider training and decision-making tools for method choice did not find evidence of an effect. Additional antenatal or postpartum counseling sessions were associated with increased postpartum contraceptive use, regardless of their timing in pregnancy or postpartum. High-quality evidence is lacking for the majority of intervention types.
The study concluded that the evidence base and quality of studies are limited, and further research is needed to determine the effectiveness of many counseling interventions in different settings.
Reference: https://srh.bmj.com/content/46/4/254
