Supporting Contraceptive Decision-Making in the Intermediated Pharmacy Setting in Kenya

TL;DR

This study developed and tested a tablet-based contraceptive decision-support app for adolescent girls and young women in Kenyan pharmacies, aiming to improve informed choices and reproductive health outcomes.

Contribution

It introduces a novel, user-centered digital intervention tailored for intermediated pharmacy settings in Kenya, addressing a critical gap in AGYW contraceptive decision support.

Findings

App feedback from AGYW and providers informed design improvements.

Intermediation strategies can enhance technology adoption in resource-limited settings.

The intervention shows promise for empowering AGYW in contraceptive decisions.

Abstract

Adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) in sub-Saharan Africa face unique barriers to contraceptive access and lack AGYW-centered contraceptive decision-support resources. To empower AGYW to make informed choices and improve reproductive health outcomes, we developed a tablet-based application to provide contraceptive education and decision-making support in the pharmacy setting - a key source of contraceptive services for AGYW - in Kenya. We conducted workshops with AGYW and pharmacy providers in Kenya to gather app feedback and understand how to integrate the intervention into the pharmacy setting. Our analysis highlights how intermediated interactions - a multiuser, cooperative effort to enable technology use and information access - could inform a successful contraceptive intervention in Kenya. The potential strengths of intermediation in our setting inform implications for technological health interventions in intermediated scenarios in \lrem{LMICs}\ladd{low- and middle-income countries}, including challenges and opportunities for extending impact to different populations and integrating technology into resource-constrained healthcare settings.