Planning services in Iloilo City: A diagnostic study of the implementation of the Department of Health Training Courses for family planning providers in Region II and Cordillera Administrative Region

This research project is one of several being undertaken in the Philippines under the Family Planning Operations Research and Training (FPORT) Program of the Department of Health (DOH) and the Population Council. The general aim of FPORT is to train researchers to provide information to family planning (FP) practitioners that will be of value in the operation of FP programs. It was decided that researchers in northern Luzon would focus on FP trainings undertaken by the Department of Health. Several meetings among researchers and health personnel were held to shape research questions that would be of use to the DOH as it implements its training programs. The design of the project was a joint effort of researchers and DOH personnel, in the end focusing on a tentative topic, the Basic/Comprehensive Family Planning Course for Physicians, Nurses, and Midwives. As noted in this report, it was decided that the process of training would be emphasized rather than its outcome, and it was also decided that the focus of research would be expanded to include other courses for FP providers, specifically Interpersonal Communication Skills and a Preceptors Course.