Putting the QFP into Practice Series Toolkit
This resource is currently under review due to the release of Providing Quality Family Planning Services in the United States: Recommendations of the U.S. Office of Population Affairs (Revised 2024).
Welcome to the Toolkit
The Quality Family Planning Recommendations (QFP), developed collaboratively by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Office of Population Affairs (OPA), outlines how to provide quality family planning services, which include contraceptive services, pregnancy testing and counseling, helping clients achieve pregnancy, basic infertility services, preconception health services, and sexually transmitted infections (STI) services.
This toolkit builds on the seven eLearning modules in the Putting the QFP into Practice series to offer suggested action steps and additional tools to support staff at Title X-funded agencies to implement the QFP recommendations. Explore the QFP Training Topics for additional training and resources related to these recommendations.
Note: The eLearning modules replace the previous Putting the QFP into Practice eLearning and webinar series as well as the Family Planning Basics eLearning.
The resources in this toolkit can be used in any order, depending on needs and priorities. The trainings and materials are organized in the following categories, aligned with QFP:
- Introduction to the QFP
- Reproductive Anatomy and Physiology
- Determining the Client’s Need for Services and Discussing Reproductive Goals
- Pregnancy Testing and Counseling
- Contraceptive Counseling and Education
- Support for Achieving a Healthy Pregnancy
- STI Services
The goal of the QFP is to support agencies in offering family planning services that will help clients achieve their desired number and spacing of children and increase the likelihood that those children are born healthy. The QFP also provides guidance about how to support the health of clients who choose not to have children.
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Become familiar with QFP Recommendations and principles of quality family planning counseling and education. |
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To apply QFP recommendations, family planning staff that provide counseling should have a basic understanding of reproductive anatomy and physiology.
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Understand basic reproductive anatomy and physiology in order to provide accurate counseling. |
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Family planning clients may need a range of services, in addition to their stated reasons for a visit. Providers should assess whether clients seeking to prevent or achieve pregnancy need other related services. When clients visit a provider for a reason not related to preventing or achieving pregnancy, the need for family planning services should also be assessed. Discussing reproductive goals with all clients can help providers to identify the need for family planning services and guide the provision of care.
| Action Steps | Supportive Resources |
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Assess and address the client’s primary reason for the visit first. |
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Engage the client in a discussion of reproductive goals to identify unmet needs related to preventing or achieving pregnancy. |
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If the client’s primary reason for the visit is not related to preventing or achieving pregnancy, assess the need for family planning, preconception health, STI and other related services based on the client’s age and gender. Provide these services as appropriate. |
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If the client’s primary reason for the visit is related to preventing or achieving pregnancy, assess the need for other related health services. Provide these services or refer the client as appropriate. |
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Pregnancy testing is a common reason for clients to visit family planning service providers. Family planning providers should offer pregnancy testing and counseling in accordance with Title X regulations as well as recommendations of professional medical associations.
| Action Steps | Supportive Resources |
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In response to a positive pregnancy test, offer clients the opportunity to be provided information and counseling regarding each of the following options: prenatal care and delivery; infant care, foster care, or adoption; and pregnancy termination. If requested to provide such information and counseling, provide neutral, factual information and nondirective counseling on each of the options, and, referral upon request, except with respect to any option(s) about which the pregnant client indicates they do not wish to receive such information and counseling. |
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In response to a negative pregnancy test, explore the client’s reproductive goals and unmet needs related to preventing or achieving pregnancy, as well as need for STI services. |
Family planning services include providing contraception to clients who want to prevent pregnancy or space births. If the client wants to prevent pregnancy, the provider should counsel according to the QFP recommendations as well as the CDC’s U.S. Selected Practice Recommendations for Contraceptive Use and US Medical Eligibility Criteria (US MEC).
| Action Steps | Supportive Resources |
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Provide client-centered contraceptive counseling using a shared-decision making approach. Using this approach, the provider supports the client to make their health care decisions, taking into account the best scientific evidence as well as the client’s values and preferences. |
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Use open-ended questions to explore the client’s preferences related to their contraceptive method. |
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Provide factual information about birth control methods based on the client’s stated preferences. |
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Clients who are not pregnant but are trying to be should be offered services to help achieve pregnancy or basic infertility services, as appropriate. Family planning providers should offer preconception health services to all clients to improve pregnancy and birth outcomes as well as the client’s overall health.
| Action Steps | Supportive Resources |
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Counsel the client about ways to maximize natural fertility in order to achieve pregnancy. |
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Assess the client’s need for basic infertility services and develop a plan of care as needed. |
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Assess the client’s interest in discussing preconception health. Provide preconception counseling to help the client be prepared for a healthy pregnancy. |
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Family planning services include providing STI testing and treatment to prevent tubal infertility and improve the overall health of clients.
| Action Steps | Supportive Resources |
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Provide client-centered STI screening, prevention education and counseling, and treatment in accordance with CDC’s STI Treatment Guidelines. |
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