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Evidence-based Guidance Developed Through Worldwide Collaboration

New Edition Available Now! The 2018 Edition of the Handbook has been released, incorporating new guidance from the WHO's Medical Eligibility Criteria for Contraceptive Use (5th Edition, 2015) and Selected Practice Recommendations for Contraceptive Use (3rd Edition, 2016). A quick overview of the new guidance can be found in the revised MEC Wheel.

Family Planning: A Global Handbook for Providers offers clinic-based healthcare professionals worldwide, particularly in lower- and middle-income countries, the latest guidance on providing contraceptive methods. The book was prepared through a unique collaboration between editorial staff at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and technical experts from the World Health Organization (WHO), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and over 30 other organizations around the world. It is co-published by WHO and the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs, under the USAID-funded Knowledge for Health (K4Health) Project.

The Handbook:

  • Expands and improves on its predecessor, The Essentials of Contraceptive Technology, by covering more methods and related topics, and strengthening the evidence base for its guidance.
  • Covers more content, but still focuses on the essentials that family planning providers need to provide family planning clients with good-quality care.
  • Is written in plain terms and organized for quick reference, to serve as a resource for all levels of health care providers.
  • Is one of the WHO’s Family Planning Cornerstones. Together, the Family Planning Cornerstones support the safe and effective provision and use of family planning methods, and can be used to develop national guidelines. As the fourth cornerstone, Family Planning: A Global Handbook for Providers offers technical information to help health care providers deliver family planning methods appropriately and effectively. The other Cornerstones are Medical eligibility criteria for contraceptive use, the Selected practice recommendations for contraceptive use, and the Decision-making tool for family planning clients and providers.