Making the Birth Control Implant Part of Your Practice

The single-rod birth control implant (Implanon) was introduced in 1998, the culmination of 12 years of research and development efforts by Organon. In the clinical trials of Implanon involving 2,300 women, no pregnancies occurred during use in over approximately 73,000 monthly cycles. Since 1998, two and a half million women have successfully used the implant in countries all over the world.

A year ago, on July 18, 2006, Implanon was approved by the FDA and is now available to women in the United States. Implanon is the first and only single-rod birth control implant. It only needs to be replaced once every three years. To make sure it is used properly, the FDA and Organon require special training programs for health care professionals nation- and world-wide.

Implanon is outstanding among the birth control methods.

• The single implant placed under the skin of the upper arm works for 3 years.
• Implanon has the highest effectiveness rates of any of the reversible birth control methods. Its "perfect" and "typical" use effectiveness rates are the same: 99.5%.
• Implanon has no estrogen, making it suitable for women who cannot tolerate estrogens.
• It has been shown to be safe in use world-wide. It is currently used by women in over 30 countries.
• It can be removed at any time and pre-fertility levels return very quickly.
• It is easy to insert and remove.

Read "What Your Clients Need to Know About the Birth Control Implant" to find out more about the Implant.

Steps to Providing the Birth Control Implant

1. Find out if your clients are interested in the implant as their method of birth control.

It might be useful to find out if your clients would be interested in using the birth control implant. when it becomes available. CFHC has developed a survey in English and Spanish that you can use to gauge your clients' interest in this method.

If your agency would be interested in taking part in a simple client survey and sharing your results with others statewide, please contact Barbara Kass-Annese at kass-anneseb@cfhc.org.

2. Get trained in how to implant Implanon.

Health care providers wanting to provide Implanon to their clients should also take advantage of California Family Health Council's upcoming Women's Health Update on October 17, 2007. Providers will be able to attend an Implanon insertion training sponsored by Organon during the Update. Only providers who have gone through one of Organon's trainings are able to prescribe this method.

Register now for CFHC's Implanon training at the Women's Health Update.

3. Purchase Implanon at a reasonable price.

If you are a 304 Prime Vendor Program Participant, you can order Implanon at a discounted rate by calling the Prime Vendor toll-free at 1-888-340-2787 or emailing through their website at www.340bpvp.com.

4. Set up your protocols for providing Implanon.

If you want an Implanon protocol, it is available as a part of Harbor UCLA Medical Center’s Women’s Health Care Program’s Standard Medical Protocols. It can be purchased by contacting Christine Robinson at crobison@labiomed.org.

Have more questions?

If you have questions about Implanon, contact Organon at 1-877-IMPLANON (1-877-467-5266) or go online to www.implanon-usa.com.