Guidance for use of the Measuring Abortion Care Framework and Indicators: a WHO Abortion care guideline derivative product
Overview
This guidance presents the Measuring Abortion Care Framework and Indicators (MACFI), a derivative product of the WHO Abortion care guideline, developed to support the measurement and monitoring of abortion care and its enabling environment. The document responds to the need for standardized, comparable data and indicators to assess progress in improving the quality of abortion care across different settings. Drawing on expert consensus and existing evidence, it introduces a comprehensive measurement framework aligned with WHO guidance and centred on the values, preferences and needs of abortion seekers, while recognizing the importance of supportive health systems, legal and policy frameworks, and human rights.
The publication describes a logical results-chain framework linking structures, inputs and processes, outputs, outcomes and impacts, and provides a menu of 93 validated indicators covering law and policy, health systems, clinical care, and empowered people and communities. It offers practical guidance on selecting indicators, developing monitoring plans, identifying data sources, and interpreting and using evidence to strengthen abortion care programmes. The document also identifies key measurement gaps and priority areas for future indicator development, supporting ongoing efforts to improve the quality, accessibility and equity of abortion care worldwide.
The web annex accompanies the guidance and presents 93 indicators organized across five domains – structures, inputs and processes, outputs, outcomes and impacts – and covering law and policy, health systems, clinical care, and rights and empowered people and communities. For each indicator, detailed metadata are provided, including definitions, calculation methods, disaggregation guidance, preferred data sources, data collection tools, rationale, prior use and testing, and relevant references. The document serves as a practical resource for policymakers, programme managers, researchers and monitoring specialists seeking to assess and monitor access to, quality of, and enabling conditions for abortion care using standardized and evidence-informed measures.
