Family planning is the technique of determining the number and spacing of children that a married couple wishes to have. Family planning entails the employment of programs to prevent pregnancy using contraception and other means of birth control (Schuiling & Likis, 2013).
Family planning is a critical component of sexual and female reproductive health, providing women and children with life-saving options (""Mother, Child & Family Health Benefit from Family Planning"", 1975). Women can avoid or postpone pregnancy and achieve appropriate child spacing through female planning programs (Schuiling & Likis, 2013). Family planning is a critical and fundamental part of women health, having numerous benefits such as allowing women and their families to manage limited resources and access quality education ("Mother, Child & Family Health Benefit from Family Planning", 1975). Family planning receives support or disregard on four aspects which include its nature as a human right, as a way of socioeconomic development, as both a public and personal health issue and political concern.
As such, political, social and sociocultural considerations, as well as the perceptions of healthcare service providers, often have a significant role in the success and accessibility of family planning services (Guttmacher, 1952).
Politically, the success of family planning depends on the government funding as well provision of adequate facilities and well-trained healthcare service providers in public hospitals. The national and state governments have encouraged women to reduce the number of children for budgetary allocations which have had an impact through increasing the number of women undergoing family planning programs.
The changes in society’s perception on the number of children have had a great impact on family planning programs. The 21st parents are keen on having one or two children only achievable through joint family planning programs at a family level and society as a whole.
Sociocultural, there are some hindrances to family planning as various groups, and religious leaders are against various methods such as implants as a way of family planning. Rather, they always advocate for natural or rhythmic methods which are rarely successful hence affecting women’s health due to increased number of children (Schuiling & Likis, 2013).
The healthcare service providers' perception and cultural backgrounds often play a significant role in their effectiveness and willingness to offer family planning services. For instance, an adult health provider who disapproves of unmarried and teenage sex is less likely provides any family planning services to the single or teenage girl (Grentzer, Secura, Peipert, & Madden, 2009). Instead, they are likely to guide and counsel such a person on abstinence which may not be useful in the long run thus exposing such a lady to unintended pregnancies (Grentzer, Secura, Peipert, & Madden, 2009).
Eventually, women will conceive at the right time and bear an only adequate number of children they can take good care of hence maintaining the proper reproductive health of a woman (Grentzer, Secura, Peipert, & Madden, 2009).
In conclusion, family planning is important and every woman ought to have access to the services. The success of the program will depend on the government support, education and awareness creation as well as the willingness of a woman through the support of her husband and society as a whole.
References
Grentzer, J., Secura, G., Peipert, J., & Madden, T. (2009). Pregnancy Intention and Contraceptive Decision Making. Contraception, 80(2), 216
Guttmacher, A. (1952). Medical and Medico-Social Indications for Contraception. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 54(5), 778-785
Mother, Child & Family Health Benefit From Family Planning. (1975). Family Planning Perspectives, 7(2), 60
Schuiling, K. D., & Likis, F. E. (2013). Women’s Gynecologic Health (2nd Ed.). Burlington, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers.