Abstract
Globally, family planning service is an essential element of reproductive health care and contributes immensely to the reduction of the worldwide burden of maternal and child morbidity and mortality. This study was designed to assess the knowledge, attitude and uptake of family planning services, among women of reproductive age group attending outpatient clinic at Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital, Irrua, Nigeria. A cross-sectional study was carried out among women of reproductive age group attending outpatient clinics from December 2017 to January 2018. Respondents were selected using multi-stage sampling technique. Questionnaires were used for data collection. Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences SPSS version 17. A total of 191 (95.5%) women aged between 15 and 49 years were successfully interviewed during the study. Majority, 174/191 (91.1%) of the respondents had a good knowledge of family planning services; 125/174 (72.0%) had a positive attitude towards the use of various types of contraceptives and 29 (15.0%) were completely against the use of contraceptives. Majority of the respondents, 132 (69.0%) were not using any form of family planning. Condom was the most frequently used contraceptive method; where it accounts for 60.0% while sterilization contributes the least that is 22.0%. Major factors associated with the uptake of contraceptives include marital status (p=0.029) and the occupation of the respondents (p=0.010). Respondent’s knowledge towards family planning was good but this did not translate to use. Also, over half of the respondents had positive attitude towards family planning. The uptake of family planning services was higher than the average for Edo State and for Nigeria. Common barriers to uptake included fear of side effects and for religious reasons. The state and local government should bridge the gap between awareness and uptake of contraception; by providing correct information to women of reproductive age to break down common barriers. Key words: Knowledge, attitude, uptake, family planning services, South-South Nigeria.  
Highlights
Family planning (FP) is an essential element of reproductive health care and contributes immensely to the reduction of the worldwide burden of maternal and child morbidity and mortality (Cates et al, 2010)
In almost all the regions of the world, contraceptives are used by majority of women in the reproductive age range (15-49 years) and its goals are commonly defined using the concepts of unmet needs (United Nations, 2017; UNFPA, 2004; Kabir et al, 2017)
It was found that fulfilling unmet contraceptive need can prevent an additional 150,000 maternal deaths globally annually; and an estimated 40,000 maternal deaths in Nigeria could be averted annually (Singh, 2003; Izugbara, 2017)
Summary
Family planning (FP) is an essential element of reproductive health care and contributes immensely to the reduction of the worldwide burden of maternal and child morbidity and mortality (Cates et al, 2010). In almost all the regions of the world, contraceptives are used by majority of women in the reproductive age range (15-49 years) and its goals are commonly defined using the concepts of unmet needs (United Nations, 2017; UNFPA, 2004; Kabir et al, 2017). It has been estimated that meeting women’s need for modern family planning services could prevent about one-quarter to one third of all maternal deaths annually worldwide. It was found that fulfilling unmet contraceptive need can prevent an additional 150,000 maternal deaths globally annually; and an estimated 40,000 maternal deaths in Nigeria could be averted annually (Singh, 2003; Izugbara, 2017). Unsafe abortion, which is a common consequent of poor family planning and a major contributor to maternal death has been reported to account for up to 56% of unintended pregnancies in Nigeria (Izugbara, 2017)
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