Providers' Information Exchange with Clients in India, Peru, and Rwanda

Federico R. León, Georgetown University
Rebecka I. Lundgren, Georgetown University
Ana Huapaya, Instituto de Investigación Nutricional (IIN), Peru

This study tested at seven locations in India, Peru, and Rwanda whether a standard pattern of information exchange with clients suggested by the literature prevails in family planning counseling worldwide. Simulated clients who supposedly needed tubal ligation or the pill in India and the pill or the DMPA injectable in Peru and Rwanda requested services from Ministry of Health clinics. As expected, at each location, the providers addressed more needs assessment topics, method options items, or use instructions than contraindications of the chosen method, action mechanisms/advantages/disadvantages, side effects/warning signs, or follow-up instructions. Also as expected, the providers' overall achievements were not even midway from the full information exchange with clients required by the Bruce quality of care model. The specific information exchanged by a majority of providers was identified. Several explanations of the limited information exchanged, including barriers to access, are discussed and solutions to each problem are proposed.