Data on the number of women with infants less than 6 months old, and of those, the number who report that they are using LAM as a FP method. It is important that survey questions on LAM are clearly understood, properly translated, and described in a standardized manner by survey staff. Where the data are available, this indicator also can be disaggregated by the mother’s age, parity, education, income quintiles, and urban/rural residence.

Data Source(s):

Population-based surveys employing representative samples (e.g., Demographic Health Survey and UNICEF Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys); FP service statistics (if data are systematically obtained on the age of the youngest child)

Purpose:

This indicator measures women’s use of LAM as a FP method during the first six months postpartum and can be used to examine current prevalence and follow trends in use. LAM protects a woman from pregnancy by disrupting ovulation through about six months postpartum as long as she is fully breastfeeding and menses have not returned. Because LAM is 98 percent effective when used correctly, encourages the best breastfeeding patterns with health benefits for both mother and baby, and is a good option before transitioning to another contraceptive method, it is often promoted by health providers, particularly in low resource settings. The benefits associated with LAM use are directly related to achieving Millennium Development Goals #4 reduce child mortality and #5 improve maternal health. Optimally, when any of the three criteria for correct LAM use is no longer met, another FP method needs to be introduced quickly. Evaluators can capture this follow-up method in both the FP registry as well as in subsequent population-based surveys.

Issue(s):

This indicator is primarily based on self-report without verification that the respondent actually fulfills the three LAM criteria.  A measure of correct use will include questions that confirm that the respondent knows the three criteria, that she meets these criteria, and that she is deliberately using LAM as her method of FP.

References:

WHO and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health/Center for Communication Programs (JHU-CCP), 2011, Family Planning: A Global Handbook for Providers, Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University.  http://www.globalhandbook.org/