Korean Women’s Knowledge Level and Social Perception toward Oral Contraceptives and Perspectives on Pharmacy Visits

Abstract

Despite the high efficacy and ease of use of contraception, the rate of oral contraceptive use in the Republic of Korea remains low. This study aimed to investigate Korean women’s knowledge level and social perception toward oral contraceptives as well as their perspectives on pharmacy visits. This cross-sectional study was conducted as a 37-item online survey questionnaire on Korean women between the ages of 20 and 49. A total of 1,076 women participated in the study, and 52.0% of the participants have experienced taking oral contraceptives (“ever users”). Among oral contraceptive users, the most common reasons for taking oral contraceptives were menstrual cycle delay (67.6%) and contraception (44.7%). Regarding the social perception on oral contraceptives, single women felt more social prejudice and felt less comfortable talking about oral contraceptives compared with married women, and similar pattern was observed in younger women compared to older women. Oral contraceptive users had higher knowledge levels compared never users, but the knowledge of adverse events appeared to be low in all respondents. Ever users felt more comfortable with the pharmacy visit to purchase oral contraceptives, whereas never users felt more self-conscious of their surroundings. This study suggests that pharmacists play a significant role in oral contraceptive counseling for women, which should be conducted in a comfortable and private setting to ensure safe and effective use of oral contraceptives.