Patwardhan Examines Relationship Between Community Health Worker Engagement and Contraceptive Use in India
Posted: 4/23/2026 (CSDE Research)
CSDE Affiliate Vedavati Patwardhan (EPAR) and co-authors recently published an article in Studies in Family Planning, examining the relationship between Indian women’s contact with a community health worker (CHW) and discussion of family planning (FP) with their contraceptive use. Drawing on data from over 306,000 women in India’s 2019–2021 National Family Health Survey, the authors found that traditional contraception use is high, particularly among married nonpregnant, non-sterilized women ages 15–49 years, and used singularly as well as concurrently with modern methods. Nearly 22 percent of women reported using traditional methods (18% exclusively and 4% concurrent with modern methods). CHW discussion on family was associated with higher traditional contraceptive use, reversible modern method use, and concurrent use. Recent CHW engagement was associated with consistent modern method use, switching from traditional to modern methods, and also discontinuation of modern contraception. Findings indicate that traditional contraceptive methods are not used by the most marginalized women – in terms of age or location – and demonstrate complex patterns of use. FP programs should consider all contraceptive method choices, and not solely modern methods, as potential outcomes of agency.