title: The development of a multi-criteria decision analysis aid to help with contraceptive choices: My Contraception Tool.
abstract: My Contraception Tool (MCT) applies the principles of multi-criteria decision analysis to the choice of contraceptive method. Its purpose is to make the decision-making process transparent to the user and to suggest a method to them based on their own preferences. The contraceptive option that emerges as optimal from the analysis takes account of the probability of a range of outcomes and the relative weight ascribed to them by the user. The development of MCT was a collaborative project between London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, Brook, FPA and Maldaba Ltd. MCT is available online via the Brook and FPA websites. In this article we describe MCT's development and how it works. Further work is needed to assess the impact it has on decision quality and contraceptive behaviour.
authors.affiliation: Senior Lecturer in Sexual and Reproductive Health, Department of Social and Environmental Health Research, Faculty of Public Health & Policy, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK.
authors.forename: Rebecca S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: French
authors.forename: Frances M
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Cowan
authors.forename: Kaye
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Wellings
authors.forename: Jack
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dowie
mesh_terms: D002755:Choice Behavior; D003267:Contraception; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D003657:Decision Making; D003662:Decision Theory
keywords: research techniques; service delivery