[PROFAMILIA studies the effectiveness of contraceptive marketing programs in Colombia]. / PROFAMILIA estudia la eficacia de los programas de comercializacion de anticonceptivos en Colombia.

PIP: A recent study by PROFAMILIA, the private Colombian family planning organization, indicates that community based distribution programs and social marketing programs are not totally interchangeable forms of contraceptive distribution. Comparison of the efficacy of different systems in making contraceptives more accessible to the low income population led the researchers to conclude that social marketing programs work as well as community based distribution programs in rural areas which already have high rates of contraceptive usage. Community based distribution programs appear more effective than social marketing programs in areas where contraceptive usage is not yet well established. PROFAMILIA researchers conducted operational studies in 3 different states, each of which had a community based distribution program. In the first state the community based distribution program was suspended and a vender who had previously supplied only urban outlets added rural pharmacies to his route. The vender handled 3 kinds of pills, 2 types of spermicidal suppositories, and condoms. In a neighboring state, 3 instructors belonging to the community based distribution program were offered commissions of about 10% of the value of the products if the distributors they supervised met monthly sales quotas. The community based distribution program was left unchanged in the third state but a 2-member mobile team was trained to travel through the region by jeep, talking to community groups about the advantage of contraception. At the end of 18 months, sales of contraceptives had declined in the state where the community based distribution program was replaced by the social marketing program. The decline was believed to be related to unforeseen price increases for pills and devaluation of the Colombian peso. The social marketing project was however much more cost effective than the other 2, which continued to require PROFAMILIA subsidies. Contraceptive usage increased in the other 2 areas. The greatest subsidies were required in the program with the mobile information team, which also showed the largest increase in usage. Initial contraceptive usage levels were much lower in the area served by the mobile team. Surveys conducted before and after the program changes measured trends in contraceptive knowledge and use and the level of unmet need for contraception. Based on the survey findings, the researchers concluded that under some conditions commercial marketing programs can be substituted for community based distribution programs without negative consequences. Community based distribution programs have a greater probability of increasing usage in zones where contraception is not widely practiced. The researchers warned that commercial distribution systems expose family planning organizations to economic and political dangers such as price increases.^ieng