Enlisting private practitioners
Chi, I.C.; Huang, M.
Draper Fund Report 1986(15): 15-18
1986
ISSN/ISBN: 0191-3905 PMID: 12341231 Document Number: 353434
Private medical practitioners, including physicians, midwives, traditional practitioners, and pharmacists, are important sources of services and information about contraceptive methods. In many developing countries, private practitioners anticipated government policy and were the 1st to provide family planning services. They are the principal source of information and services for the middle and upper classes. Many people have more trust in private practitioners than government institutions. From the viewpoint of national investment, it is sometimes more cost effective to use existing private outlets than to create a new infrastructure of government family planning clinics. In several countries, private doctors have contracted with the government to insert IUDs and provide sterilizations. The role of private practitioners in the provision of family planning services can be developed much further, however. Restrictive laws can be eliminated or modified. The philosophy that private physicians complement but do not compete with government services should be promoted. Fuller use of the skills and resources of private health care providers is especially important in developing countries where there is an unmet need for contraception.