SMRH Working Group

1. www.rhsupplies.org
The Reproductive Health Supplies Coalition
and Maternal Health Supplies Caucus
Overview and Current Initiatives
Jamee Kuznicki
April 15, 2015

2. RHSC Overview

3. 3
RHSC Overview
About the RHSC
“All people are able to access and use affordable and quality supplies, including a
broad choice of contraceptive methods, needed to ensure their better sexual and
reproductive health.”
-- Vision
“Our purpose is to bring together a diversity of partners and mobilize their
collective strengths to increase access to a full range of affordable, quality
reproductive health supplies in low- and middle-income countries.”
-- Mission

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RHSC Overview

5. 5
RHSC Overview
Our membership spans the globe with 328 members…
36%
11%18%
9%
26%
Civil society
Governmental, multi-lateral, bi-
lateral
Commerce and Industry
Foundations and educational
institutions
Technical support agencies

6. 6
RHSC Overview
Our membership spans the globe with 328 members…
28%
27%
16%
15%
13%
1%

7. 7
RHSC Overview
Dual approach to meeting our goals
Strengthen the tools and systems needed to
support the Coalition’s core mandate of
assuring access to quality, affordable RH
supplies through the power of partnership.
Ensure more targeted results by
expanding Secretariat-driven initiatives that
harness the strengths and resources of our
diverse membership.
GOALS

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Maternal Health Supplies (MHS) Caucus
› RHSC has been working for over 10 years to ensure that
people around the world are able to access and use affordable, high-
quality supplies, including a broad choice of contraceptive methods,
needed to ensure their better sexual and reproductive health.
Maternal Health Supplies are Reproductive Health Supplies
› In recognition that maternal health supplies are reproductive
health supplies
and that access to them was essential for ending preventable maternal
mortality, the Maternal Health Supplies Caucus was formed in 2012.
› Purpose is to provide a forum for the maternal health and
family planning communities
to draw on existing approaches to address the bottlenecks undermining
commodity security across health systems.

9. Maternal Health Supplies are
Reproductive Health Supplies

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MHS Caucus
› MHS Caucus Objectives › Activities
• Raise awareness on MHS security
issues.
• Respond to knowledge gaps
around MHS.
• Utilize RHSC experiences,
resources, and tools.
• Convening MH community-
teleconferences, meetings,
webinars.
• Strengthening engagement with
global MH bodies/initiatives.
• Building the evidence base on
MHS.
Bridging the maternal health and family planning divide

11. Key Accomplishments

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Key Accomplishments
Oxytocin, Misoprostol, and Magnesium Sulfate Briefs
Focus on the main challenges related to
ensuring availability and use of these
three medicines:
• Examples of successful approaches, case
studies, and lessons learned from programs to
scale-up MHS.
• Recommendations on how RHSC
tools/experiences can strengthen efforts to
improve access to MHS.
Essential Medicines for Maternal Health:
Ensuring Equitable Access for All

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Key Accomplishments
Business cases on supporting investment in high-quality maternal
health supplies
› Estimate market size for each
commodity.
› Present policy recommendations and
potential market shaping strategies
for improving investment in high-
quality maternal health supplies.
Investing in Production of High-Quality
Magnesium Sulfate
Investing in Production of High-Quality Oxytocin
Investing in Production of High-Quality
Misoprostol

14. Persistent Challenges

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Persistent Challenges
› For all three commodities:
Harmonization of policies
• Standard treatment guidelines, national EMLs, and the list of products registered in
country need to be aligned.
Forecasting and supply planning
• Commodities are included in logistics management information systems in very few
countries.
• HMIS do not capture necessary morbidity data.
Quality
• Assuring the quality of products that circulate in both the public and private sectors
remains a major challenge in many countries.
Financing
• Medicines typically procured with government funding.

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Persistent Challenges
› Oxytocin: Cold storage.
› Misoprostol: Availability of 3-blister packs; concern with use for
abortion.
› Magnesium sulfate: Presentation; provider demand.

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Next steps for the MHS Caucus
› Broaden understanding of the potential for market shaping
to increase access to high-quality, affordable maternal health supplies.
› Field test the potential impact of a market shaping initiative
by implementing one or more concrete recommendations from the three
essential maternal health medicine business cases.

18. www.rhsupplies.org
THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE!
For more information visit:
www.rhsupplies.org