Family Planning High Impact Practices List
High Impact Practices (HIPs) are a set of evidence-based family planning practices vetted by experts against specific criteria and documented in an easy-to-use format.
The High Impact Practices in Family Planning (HIPs) are supported by over 30 organizations. These organizations play a vital role in developing, reviewing, disseminating, and implementing HIPs in family planning.
HIPs are identified based on demonstrated magnitude of impact on contraceptive use and potential application in a wide range of settings. Consideration is also given to other relevant outcome measures including unintended pregnancy, fertility, or one of the primary proximate determinants of fertility (delay of marriage, birth spacing, or breast feeding). Evidence of replicability, scalability, sustainability, and cost-effectiveness are also considered.
The eight-page HIP briefs can be used for advocacy, strategic planning, program design, exploration of research gaps, to inform policies and guidelines, and to support implementation.
HIPs are categorized as:

A HIP Enhancement is a tool or approach that is not a standalone practice, but it is often used in conjunction with HIPs to maximize the impact of HIP implementation or increase the reach and access for specific audiences. The intended purpose and impact of enhancements are focused and, therefore the evidence-based and impact of an enhancement is subjected to different standards than a HIP. HIP Enhancements include:
- Institutionalizing adolescent-responsive elements to expand access and choice
- Use of digital technologies to support systems and service delivery for family planning.
- Improving knowledge, capacity, and service quality for digital health to support family planning providers
- Use vouchers to facilitate equitable access to and choice of voluntary contraceptive services.

Enabling Environment HIPs
- Galvanize commitment to support family planning programs.
- Develop, implement, and monitor supportive government policies.
- Increase allocation and efficient use of domestic, public financing for voluntary family planning at national and sub-national levels.
- Develop an effective supply chain management systems for family planning so that women and men can choose, obtain, and use the contraceptive methods they want throughout their reproductive life.
- Develop and support capacity to lead and manage family planning programs.
- Keep girls in school to improve health and development
Service Delivery HIPs
Proven
- Integrate trained, equipped, and supported community health workers (CHWs) into the health system.
- Proactively offer voluntary contraceptive counseling and services at the same time and location where women receive facility-based postabortion care.
- Using marketing principles and techniques to improve contraceptive access, choice, and use through social marketing.
- Support mobile outreach service delivery to provide a wide range of contraceptives, including long-acting reversible contraceptives and permanent methods.
- Immediate Post-partum family planning: Offer contraceptive counseling and services as part of care provided during childbirth at health facilities.
Promising
- Train and support pharmacy and drug shop staff to explain contraceptive choice and access in the private sector
- Integrate family planning and immunization services: Reaching postpartum women with family planning services
- Social Franchising: Organize private providers into branded, quality-assured networks to increase access to provider-dependent contraceptive methods and related services.
Social and Behavior Change HIPs
Proven
- Use mass media channels to support healthy reproductive behaviors.
Promising
- Community Group Engagement: Engage and mobilize communities in group dialogue and action to promote healthy sexual relationships.
- Use of digital technologies to support healthy sexual and reproductive behaviors.