THE health system received a well-needed boost recently with the training of 21 health care professionals in modern, effective contraception.

The practitioners, from both the public and private sectors and consisting of doctors, nurses and midwives, were trained for three weeks in a course organised by the Women’s Health Network (WHN-Jamaica). The training culminated last Friday at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel with simulation exercises on models for the insertion of intrauterine contraceptive devices.

This followed the virtual training programme delivered by local and global experts in intrauterine contraceptive devices (IUD) insertion and contraceptive technology practices in general.

Commenting on the need for the training programme, Dr Rudolph Stevens, executive director of WHN-Jamaica, said, “This means that more Jamaican women will have a wider choice of available contraceptives as more health professionals will be able to safely insert these devices and allow women to plan and space their pregnancies using a modern, effective, long-acting, reversible method; such as hormonal (levonorgestrel intrauterine system –LNG-IUS, Mirena, Jaydess) and the non-hormonal system using copper (Copper t, that is Cu-t 380A).”

He added: “The issue we have been facing is while these methods have been available for sometime the uptake by women has been as low as two per cent, as there are not many trained persons available to safely insert these contraceptives.”

Dr Stevens said the Women’s Health Network has launched a campaign to increase uptake to four per cent in four years by doing a series of training workshops over the next two to three years to build local capacity. He credited the technical support from Bayer Pharmaceutical & International Contraceptive Access Foundation, as well as facilitation from local partners to make these training courses possible and potentially sustainable.

From all indications the training was well received by the participants and according to one participant from the public sector. “[It was] excellent training with very good pacing [and] co-ordinators were professional in delivery. Thank you for the experience and I look forward to participating in more from Women’s Health Network,” said the participant.