Healthy timing and spacing of pregnancy (HTSP) is an approach to family planning that helps women and families delay, space, or limit their pregnancies to achieve the healthiest outcomes for women, newborns, infants, and children. HTSP works within the context of free and informed contraceptive choice and takes into account fertility intentions and desired family size. 

This toolkit for policy makers, program managers, and service providers includes:
  • research papers that discuss the evidence for the benefits of HTSP
  • international policy guidance from organizations such as the World Health Organization, UNFPA, and USAID
  • training manuals and materials and job aids
  • client and public education materials
  • resources for advocating with policy makers and community members. 
Resources on these topics and more can be found under the horizontal navigation tabs at the top of this page.
 
The toolkit is based on evidence-based recommendations from WHO and USAID that women should delay their first pregnancy until at least age 18 and that:
  • After a live birth, they should wait at least 24 months before attempting another pregnancy in order to reduce the risk of adverse maternal, perinatal and infant outcomes.
  • After a miscarriage or induced abortion, they should wait at least six months before attempting another pregnancy to reduce risks of adverse maternal and perinatal outcomes.
The Extending Service Delivery Project (ESD), in collaboration with FHI, Georgetown University's Institute for Reproductive Health, the Maternal Child Health Integrated Program (MCHIP), World Vision International, and Knowledge for Health Project, made up the Steering Committee that outlined the development of the toolkit. HTSP Core Group members and HTSP Champions around the world (from 32 countries and 106 organizations and projects) contributed resources.
 
Under the Country Experiences tab, there is a rich variety of case studies and briefs about the potential for HTSP from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Burundi, Cambodia, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Jordan, Kenya, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Rwanda, Tanzania, the West Bank/Gaza, and Yemen.
 
If you have an experience to share about the introduction or provision of healthy timing and spacing of pregnancy services, we invite you to tell us about it on the discussion board where you can also suggest new resources. To find out if a resource has already been included in this toolkit, type the title in the search box at the top of any toolkit page and click on the magnifying glass logo. For more detailed information about this and other K4Health eToolkits, go to the About tab at the top of this page.

 

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