In 1993, the U.S. Agency for International Development surveyed 50 countries on reproductive health activities either ongoing or planned to begin by 1995. In an evaluation by the Population Council, programs in Tegucigalpa, Honduras and Lima, Peru that combined postpartum services with family planning achieved a higher contraceptive prevalence and cost savings. In an experimental study in Lima, women offered contraception before hospital discharge were substantially more likely to be using contraception six months postpartum, compared to women who did not receive any family planning after childbirth. However, integrating new health services into a family planning program may enhance one component of health care at the expense of another. Primary health care clinics in many countries already have many tasks to meet, says FHI's Dr. Nancy Williamson, who has written extensively on the integration of family planning and STD services.
More thought needs to be given on how to integrate the activities for a worker or a client.
There are many reproductive health services that could be added to family planning services. Two of the most widely studied service categories include maternal health care and STD prevention or treatment. STD prevention Family planning programs may be an appropriate place to provide STD prevention and treatment because many of the functions overlap. Having an STD increases a person's risk for HIV infection and transmission. STDs also contribute to reproductive tract problems in women, can harm unborn fetuses, and increase a woman's chances of developing cervical cancer.7 Most STDs, including syphilis, genital herpes, chancroid, genital warts, bacterial vaginosis, trichomoniasis, chlamydia and gonorrhea, increase a woman's risk for illness and death during pregnancy and childbirth.