Tulane Secures $2 Million to Expand Contraceptive Self-Care in the Democratic Republic of Congo

WSPH Communications sphcomm@tulane.edu
Julie Hernandez, pictured with Research Assistant Professor Arsene Binanga, is spearheading a contraception initiative in the DRC.

Collecting a win for patient autonomy and by extension better continuation rates, the Celia Scott Weatherhead School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine has received a new $2 million gift from an anonymous private donor to expand access to self-injectable contraception in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The initiative will increase women's access to safe, client-centered contraceptive care while strengthening national systems that support family planning.

The project will run through June 2027 and be led by Principal Investigator Dr. Julie Hernandez, associate professor in the Department of International Health and Sustainable Development (IHSD) and director of the Center for Reproductive Health Policy and Programs. 

“We see this award as extremely encouraging, not only because it signals the continued recognition of Tulane’s position as a key implementing partner in the DRC public health landscape, but also the continued engagement of a large and diverse group donors committed to investing in women’s care and empowerment across the world,” Hernandez says.

Hernandez will work alongside Tulane International country director Dr. Arsène Binanga and IHSD Assistant Professor Dr. Janna Wisniewski as co-principal investigator, with administrative, budget, and compliance support from center Director Maria Herdoiza and Program Manager Emma Powers. 

The initiative builds on Tulane’s long-standing partnership with the DRC Ministry of Health and its leadership in community-based family planning programs. It focuses on expanding access to subcutaneous depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA-SC) self-injection, a method that allows women to safely administer their own contraceptive injections. 

The FDA-approved injectable has been shown to be popular among women in several African nations.

Tulane will leverage its long-standing nursing school model and expand the current training curriculum to more strongly focus on client-centered counseling, empathy, and women’s autonomy in contraceptive decision-making.

The team will also develop targeted demand-generation strategies to position self-injection as a safe and empowering self-care option. At the systems level, the project will improve national reporting tools to better capture self-injection use and strengthen supply planning to ensure consistent availability of DMPA-SC.