Public hospitals in the Capital have reported a substantial increase in the number of women opting for contraceptive devices immediately after childbirth from January to March, according to data collected from the Directorate of Health and Family Welfare.

The service of postpartum intrauterine contraceptive device or PPIUCD, is currently available in 37 government hospitals and seven maternity homes.

Opting for a contraceptive device right after delivery helps in boosting maternal health by avoiding unwanted pregnancy.    

“PPIUCD is an important tool for improving maternal survival rates as it averts unwanted pregnancy right after childbirth. This also helps improve child health which is proportional to her/his mother’s health. The programme is picking up pace in Delhi. Earlier, there was a misconception that it was not right to go for contraceptive devices immediately after giving birth. Through awareness programmes, the situation is evolving,” said Dr D K Dewan, Director of Department of Health and Family Welfare.

The highest number of PPIUCD cases have been observed in Babu Jagjivan Ram Hospital, Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital, Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, Lal Bahadur Shastri Hospital and Safdarjung Hospital, said a source in the department.  

In 2010, the programme was launched in 25 government hospitals.

While the data shows 550 cases for the first three months when it was launched, hospitals have reported 5,865 such cases from January to March this year, the highest achieved so far.

Meanwhile, the government hospitals have contributed to 10.21 per cent of PPIUCD cases of the total deliveries for the year 2013-2014, a considerable increase from the year 2012-2013.

“We are training hospital staff in batches to educate women on the advantages of PPIUCD. The programme will soon be available in the other maternity homes after the staff are briefed. We are also battling the existing myths among women that pregnancy can be avoided during breast feeding,” a top official said.

 “A woman’s health is usually hit with very little gap between two deliveries. Counselling women that the service is safe is the biggest task. PPIUCD is not only aimed at family planning but also improving women’s health,” said the official .

However, one of the reasons that PPIUCD is less popular is the high expulsion rate of the device. In this case, the device needs to be reinserted after six weeks.

“Studies show there is a high expulsion rate of devices inserted immediately after delivery, may be this still remains a major concern among women,” said the official.