Background: The quality of care provided in family planning services is usually measured through women’s perceptions of services. Fewer studies compared their perception with direct observation of health personnel, which might lead to inadequate evaluation of the quality of services provided.
Aim: The objective of this study was to compare the level of agreement between direct observations of health personnel while providing family planning services with women’s perceptions of services.
Methods: A cross-sectional of a convenient sample from three health care centers operated by the Jordanian Ministry of Health recruited women at a reproductive age and collected information on family planning sessions and women perception on the exit. There was a family planning session for each participant (n=503). Chi-Square testing and Kappa coefficients for agreement were used in the analysis.
Results: Women mean age was 31.11 years (+ 7.09), 41% of them were new users. In a binary relationship, the provided information on how to use contraceptive method and side effects of their use were significantly related to womens number of children (p=0.024 and 0.004, respectively). Seven out of eight observed counseling items were significantly related to provider’s level of experience. Using Kappa coefficient, the disagreements between direct observation and exit interview were evident in almost all items.
Conclusion: Client interviews should not be used without direct observation as a quality measurement in settings where health care providers and clients are well-known to each other.
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