Provider insights on barriers and opportunities for birth spacing utilization in Karnataka, India.

India is the second most populous country in the world, with half of its citizens being of reproductive age. Despite the availability of a long-standing national family planning program, India maintains an unmet contraceptive need and high rate of maternal morbidity and mortality. In order to develop strategies to improve the utilization of birth-spacing contraceptive methods, we conducted a qualitative study with providers of family planning services in Karnataka, India. We elicited facilitators and barriers associated with peripartum contraceptive counseling and provision and identified an important opportunity to increase the use of postpartum contraception and improve birth spacing.