Assessment of Perception of Family Planning among Mothers in an Urban Slum Area in Kolkata, India

Abstract

Introduction: Women in India are not fully educated on contraception usage. In 2017, a central family planning initiative called Mission Pariwar Vikas was launched by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW). Aim: This study was conducted among mothers in an urban slum in Kolkata to establish their unmet family planning needs, as well as different factors associated with it. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional community-based study was conducted from February 2019 to May 2019 among mothers residing at an urban field practice area (Dhapa UHTC, Kolkata). All mothers of under-five children present in the slum were included in the study (n=246). Pre-designed, pre-tested, semi-structured schedule with both open and closed-ended questions were used. Results: The majority of the mothers were Muslim, of whom 37.8% were below 18 years of age. Among the mothers, 46.3% were adolescent mothers (<18 years). Around 78% mothers desired two children. Around 70.7% mothers were using some form of contraceptives at the time of the study. Out of 246 subjects, unmet family planning needs were found in 72 (29.3%) subjects. Significant association was found between unmet family planning needs and age, education level, socio-economic status, knowledge of the ideal age of marriage, and the number of children desired. Conclusion: The study revealed the unmet needs for contraception in an urban slum. However, the practice assessed by the study was actually reported practice and therefore, recall bias might be present. Further studies are recommended in other areas and different settings in order to extrapolate the study findings.