A comprehensive assessment of the quality of services provided by family planning field workers in one major area of Dhaka city, Bangladesh

Abstract

Bangladesh has considerable national experience promoting and providing family planning services through home visits to reproductive-age married women by paid female community workers. Since 1978, the government has trained and employed 24,000 such workers, known as Family Welfare Assistants (FWA), while nongovernmental organizations (NGO) have trained and employed an additional 7000 field workers to carry out similar activities. NGO field workers are considered to be part of the national family planning program. Findings are presented from an assessment of the quality of family planning services provided by community-based field workers in zone 3 of Dhaka City, Bangladesh, and are based upon a large household survey of a representative sample of clients, direct field worker observation, and interviews with field workers and clients. Areas in greatest need of improvement include the frequency of contact with clients who are nonusers or who have special needs, client education about family planning methods, and counseling about side effects and warning signs.