Webinar Recording: Why Do We Need to Elevate the "S" in SBC to Improve Family Planning/Reproductive Health Outcomes?

"...some of us working in social and behavior change have perhaps overemphasized in some cases individual behavior change when in fact so much of individual behavior change is shaped by...social norms, gender norms, or the more structural factors and policies that really contribute to intersectional marginalization and...inequitable health outcomes..." - Lynn Van Lith

Family planning (FP) inequities hinder access to FP information, services, and methods for women, men, and other gender-diverse people across socioeconomic statuses. Addressing social determinants of health (SDOH) is an approach to achieving health equity. Hosted by Breakthrough ACTION, this webinar makes the case for explicitly considering and addressing SDOH - the "S" in "social and behaviour change" (SBC) - in FP and reproductive health (RH) programming. The webinar also explores how to build effective coalitions with multi-sectoral actors working in this field.

The webinar (click on the video above to watch) opens with an overview by Lynn Van Lith, Technical Director, Breakthrough ACTION, Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs (CCP). Van Lith is one of the authors of the technical document "Intentionally Incorporating the Social Determinants of Health into Social and Behavior Change Programming for Family Planning" and the programmatic tool "Expanding the "S" in Social and Behavior Change: Addressing Social Determinants of Health and Health Equity in SBC Programming" (see Related Summaries, below). In addition to briefly describing these documents, Van Lith introduces the Breakthrough ACTION project and provides some key definitions to frame the conversation.

Moderated by Breakthrough ACTION's Carol Underwood (Associate Professor, CCP), the panel discussion that follows features the voices and experiences of civil society, governments, and donors, who make the case for explicitly considering and addressing equity and SDOH in SBC programming. Featured panelists include:

• Beverly Lorraine Ho, Concurrent Director IV, Health Promotion Bureau and Disease Prevention and Control Bureau, Department of Health, Philippines
• Arame Gueye Sène, Executive Director, Social Change Factory, Senegal
• Foyeke Oyedokun-Adebagbo, Project Management Specialist - Social and Behavior Change, Health, Population & Nutrition Office, U.S. Agency for International Development, Nigeria

Underwood introduces the panelists and then asks each of them to discuss why addressing equity and the SDOH is so important in SBC programming focused on FP/RH, in their experience. For example, Ho notes that asking an individual to do a certain behaviour may be unfair and unwise from a programmatic investment standpoint. As she explains, without actually working on the systems around individuals to support and reinforce behaviour change - particularly when the quality and sensitivity of FP/RH services are lacking and/or when social, economic, and political factors constrain decision making - we may be setting up people to fail. Echoing this sentiment, and sharing research out of Nigeria, Oyedokun-Adebagbo called addressing equity a "no-brainer". Other topics covered in the discussion include, for example, the role each panelist has had in advocating for attention to equity and the SDOH in SBC programming on FP/RH, the need to normalise addressing SDOH as reflected in the theories of change or frameworks of projects donors or development partners are approving, and the power of sharing indicators across sectors to ensure we are systematically addressing SDOH in our work.

Relevant links:

• The English version of the webinar is available by clicking above. Click here to watch it in French.
• Click here for the webinar slides (English, PDF, 20 pages).
• Click here to access a document referenced in the webinar, "Healthy People 2030 - Social Determinants of Health".
• Click here to access "Closing the Gap in a Generation: Health Equity through Action on the Social Determinants of Health - Final Report of the Commission on Social Determinants of Health", also referenced in the webinar.
• Click here to access the recording of the second webinar in this series: "How Can SBC Programming Address Equity and Social Determinants of Health Considerations in FP/RH?"
• Click here to access the recording of the third webinar in this series: "What Does It Mean to Prioritize Social Accountability in SBC Programming to Address Equity and Social Determinants of Health in FP/RH?"