DMPA-SC self-injection in Ghana, Malawi, DRC, Senegal, and Uganda

 A new type of injectable contraception is transforming the way women and adolescent girls access and use family planning. Subcutaneous DMPA, or DMPA-SC,*is an innovative product that makes injections simpler. Because DMPA-SC is easy to use, any trained person can administer it, including community health workers, pharmacists, and even women themselves. 
 As we work to ensure a wide variety of contraceptives is available in the basket of choice, Clients should consider how offering DMPA-SC can address unmet need and increase access through a range of delivery channels.Benefiting users, providers, and health systems 
 
 Advantages

●99 percent effective at preventing unintended pregnancy when given correctly and on time every three months.
 ●Lower dose of contraceptive hormone than intramuscular DMPA (DMPA-IM). ●Shorter needle for easier and more comfortable injections. 
●Small and light.  
●Discreet contraception for women and adolescent girls. 
●Stable at room temperature (15°C to 30°C). ●Simplified logistics—no need to match vial with syringe and needle.  
●Easy to deliver through all public- and private-sector channels.  
●Preferred by most women and providers over DMPA-IM.

            “Self-administration of DMPA-SC is feasible, acceptable, effective, and improves continuation... [now] what is most needed is implementation research to analysehow self-administration is implemented in practice and to understand the barriers and facilitators to successful implementation.”  
                                                      –Julia E. Kohn, Lancet Global Health