The Society for Family Health (SFH), in conjunction with Population Service International (PSI), is implementing the “Delivering Innovation in Self Care” known as the DISC project in some states, including Lagos.
The initiative was funded by the Children Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF).
According to the Social and Behavioral Change Communication Officer in Lagos State, Samson Okoliko, the Delivering Innovation in Self Care project started in Lagos in 2021 with five Proprietary and Patent Medicine Vendors (P PMVs) and 74 Public Health Facilities which includes Primary Health Centres and Secondary Health Facilities across 12 local government, with the support of Lagos State Government.
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The project supports women to assume greater control over their sexual and reproductive health by using contraceptive self-care methods like self-inject (Depot Medroxyprogesterone Acetate- Subcutaneous DMPA-SC), which can help in delaying or preventing pregnancy if a woman so desires.
The Social and Behavioral Change Communication Officer, Omotola Omotoso said that since the DISC project was introduced various activities have been executed in Lagos State to sensitize and train the public, including Women of Reproductive Age (WRA), on the need to embrace self-inject method of contraceptive. Some of these programmes include- Moment of Truth (MOT) training. The MOT seeks to improve the providers empathy skills,which addresses the gaps demonstrated by the providers. The MOT initiative has trainned more than a hundred family planning providers.
The DISC project has also utilized various strategies such as Below the Line (BLT) and Above the Line (ATL) to educate women of reproductive age in Lagos of the need to embrace self-care to help them take care of their sexual and reproductive health needs.