How Often Are Parents Counseled About Family Planning During Pediatric Visits? Results of a Nationally Representative Sample

OBJECTIVE: Maternal family planning plays an important role in child, maternal, and family health; children's health care providers are in a unique position to counsel adult caregivers regarding contraception and appropriate birth spacing. We sought to determine the prevalence of caregiver family planning counseling by children's health care providers during preventive care visits for infants and young children. METHODS: Data from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey from 2009 to 2012 as well as National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey from 2009 to 2011 were analyzed to determine the weighted frequency of family planning/contraception counseling provided during preventive, primary care visits for children younger than the age of 2 years. RESULTS: Family planning/contraception counseling or education was documented in only 16 of 4261 preventive care visits in primary care settings for children younger than the age of 2 years, corresponding to 0.30% (95% confidence interval, -0.08% to 0.68%) of visits nationally. Similar frequencies were calculated for preventive visits with children younger than 1 year and with infants younger than 60 days of age. CONCLUSIONS: Despite Bright Futures' recommendations for children's health care providers to address caregiver family planning during well infant visits, documented counseling is rare. The results indicate that there are missed opportunities to promote family health in the pediatric setting.