As methods of Natural Family Planning involve minimal – if any – financial cost, why are they so little utilized? Well, money talks, and the sale of contraceptives constitutes a phenomenally lucrative (and EVIL) industry!
“Worldwide contraceptive use has been increasing consistently in the past few decades. By 2015 the developing world alone may have 217 million more contraceptive users than in 2000….Much of the demand…will involve hormonal methods. Oral contraceptives (OC) are already the most-popular modern method in Middle and Western Africa, whereas injectable contraceptives (IC) are used widely in Eastern and Southern Africa, as well as in Southeast Asia.…“a handful of multinational companies account for the majority of hormonal contraceptive brands registered around the world….“Commercial distribution channels for these products include licensed pharmacies and service delivery outlets (SDO), such as public and private clinics and hospitals….“products rarely are promoted to the end consumer, but rather to the people who are authorized to prescribe them, typically licensed physicians….Marketing to physicians involves hiring medically trained staff that regularly visits doctors’ offices and other SDOs. These visits rarely last more than a few minutes and focus on discussing new launches and addressing product-related issues….“pharmaceutical companies invest in extensive public-relations programs and continuing education for providers….“A large proportion of hormonal-product users in developing countries obtain their supplies from the public sector....“Common social-marketing strategies include educational campaigns designed to increase the number of contraceptive users and improved distribution in areas commercial suppliers may under serve. In some countries, social-marketing brands of OCs can be sold without prescription and are promoted through the mass media….“Hormonal contraceptives…are more difficult to procure than condoms, which are manufactured at low cost in several Asian countries….“Public and social-marketing programs in the poorest developing countries also have created an oligopoly that benefits Western-based large contraceptive manufacturers” (U.S. Agency for International Development, http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PNADF983.pdf)
Natural Family Planning Resources:
The Couple to Couple League http://www.ccli.org/
Creighton Model http://www.creightonmodel.com/
Philadelphia Natural Family Planning Network www.pnfpn.org
No comments:
Post a Comment