Empowering Change: How Practitioners Can Use Gender Measures to Improve Family Planning and Maternal Health Outcomes

Introduction

In the realm of family planning (FP) and maternal health (MH), gender-integrated interventions have shown promise in improving outcomes, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). A recent study, "A Review of Measures of Women’s Empowerment and Related Gender Constructs in Family Planning and Maternal Health Program Evaluations in Low- and Middle-Income Countries," highlights the importance of understanding gender measures to enhance these interventions.

Understanding Gender Measures

The study emphasizes that gender-integrated interventions, which actively incorporate gender norms and dynamics, can significantly impact FP and MH outcomes. However, it also reveals a gap in how gender influences these outcomes due to inconsistent descriptions and the lack of validated gender measures within evaluations.

Key Findings

The systematic review analyzed 16 evaluation articles and identified 13 women’s empowerment and related gender constructs. These constructs include:

• Gender-equitable attitudes
• Women’s decision-making power
• Communication around sexual and reproductive health (SRH) matters

Despite these insights, less than one-third of the articles examined the effect of gender on FP or MH outcomes, highlighting a critical gap in current evaluations.

Recommendations for Practitioners

For practitioners aiming to improve their skills and outcomes in FP and MH interventions, the study suggests several actionable steps:

1. Adopt Validated Measures: Use validated gender measures to assess empowerment and gender constructs effectively. This can help identify how empowerment contributes to positive FP and MH outcomes.
2. Integrate Gender Constructs: Ensure that interventions explicitly incorporate gender constructs in their design and evaluation. This includes understanding the pathways through which interventions empower women.
3. Focus on Multidimensional Empowerment: Recognize that empowerment is multidimensional, encompassing psychological, social, economic, legal, and political dimensions. Tailor interventions to address these dimensions comprehensively.
4. Conduct Further Research: Encourage further research to explore the relationship between women’s empowerment and FP/MH outcomes. This can lead to more robust and effective interventions.

Conclusion

By focusing on validated gender measures and integrating them into FP and MH interventions, practitioners can better understand and influence the pathways through which women’s empowerment leads to improved health outcomes. This approach not only enhances the effectiveness of interventions but also contributes to the broader goal of gender equality in health.

To read the original research paper, please follow this link: A review of measures of women’s empowerment and related gender constructs in family planning and maternal health program evaluations in low- and middle-income countries.