Practice Of Family Planning Research Articles

Knowledge, attitude and practice of family planning among pregnant women at Grace Specialist Hospital

Background: Unwanted pregnancy is a common event in our environment and many of them will end in an unsafe abortion. Unsafe abortion isa significant cause of maternal mortality. Correct use of effective family planning methods will reduce the incidence of unwanted pregnancy andimprove the health of women.Objective: To determine the knowledge, attitude and practice of family planning among ante natal clients.Method: A cross sectional study of 346 consecutive antenatal clients using a self administered structured questionnaire. Analysis was with SPSSfor windows, version 15 and level of significance was set at P = 0.5 ( 95% confidential interval).Results: The mean age in the study was 28.06 + 4.9 and the mean parity was 1.51 + 1.5. 96.3% were married and all of them had at leastprimary education. Ninety-six percent of the respondents (n = 309) were aware of at least one family method. The most common methods knownby the respondents were Condom and Billings’ methods (48.6%). The commonest source of information on family planning was the mediarepresenting 35.1%. Only 47.5% of the respondents had used one form of family planning method. The most commonly used method wasBillings / Calendar (50.3%). Child spacing was the commonest reason for using family planning. Most of those who did not use (30.2%) feltthey had no need for it. Education and religion did not significantly affect the use of a family planning method. However, members of religiousgroups other than Roman Catholic were more likely to use a modern method (P

Contraceptive knowledge, attitudes and practice among married women in Samaru Community, Zaria, Nigeria

Contraceptive use and fertility rates vary substantially among developing countries. In some sub-Saharan African countries, fewer than 10% of married women use contraception. Despite all efforts by governments to ensure availability of the products, prevalence has remained low. We conducted a community-based study to examine contraceptive knowledge, attitude and practice of family planning among married women in Samaru, Zaria, Nigeria. Multi-stage random sampling technique was used to study 200 women in Samaru community of Zaria, Nigeria. Mean age of the respondents was 30.6 +/- 1.5 years. In this study contraceptive prevalence was 12.5% and respondents had a positive attitude towards family planning. Thirty years after Alma Ata of which one of the components is to ensure maternal and child health (MCH) and family planning, contraceptive use in most of the communities in Northern Nigeria is low. There is urgent need to step-up public awareness campaigns on family planning to ensure wide spread acceptability and utilization among women within reproductive age group.

Islamic Religious Leaders and Family Planning in Northern Nigeria: A Case Study of Zamfara, Sokoto and Niger States

The ulema or Islamic religious scholars, and by extension Islam are seen to be opposed to family planning or birth control. As such international donors and programmers target Islamic religious leaders for advocacy and sensitization on the efficacy of accepting programs that target reproductive health issues. This paper analyzes the view of Islamic scholars who argue that Islam is not against reducing maternal mortality or addressing maternal health issues or birth spacing; rather, what Islam opposes is the practice of birth control for population control. The findings indicate that it would be very difficult to effectively influence behavior change within the Muslim community on family planning/reproductive health practices without a better understanding of how it is seen from the perspective of the ulema. The study shows that there are enlightened elements amongst Islamic scholars who are concerned and willing to contribute towards a better understanding of reproductive health and are also concerned about communicating correct information about the rights of pregnant women as enjoined by Islam. The analysis demonstrates that the position held by the excessively secularist perspective that ignores the roles of religious actors and generally perceives these roles as inherently conflictual, undemocratic and authoritarian, needs to be reviewed and reassessed in the context of global and national trends.

Women, Microcredit and Family Planning Practices: A Case Study from Rural Ghana

This paper examines the influence of informal banking club participation on family planning practices in rural Ghana. Research from Asia suggests that family planning practices are improved by club participation. This study examines this thesis in an African context, using rural Ghana as a case study. A sample of 204 women (19 years and older) was drawn from Abokobi village, Ghana. Multivariate analyses of direct, mediating and moderating effects of women’s demographic background characteristics, membership status and length, and women’s empowerment status as predictors of family planning practices are assessed. Findings suggest that club membership and membership length is not associated with family planning practices; however, age, education level, number of children and empowerment status are.

Cultural and Media Practices on Health and Family Planning of Selected Urban Poor Communities

abstractThis research study constructs a cultural and media profile of 18 selected urban poor communities in Metro Manila, the Philippines, as they practise health and family planning using various forms of media. It involves the demographic and psychographic assessment of the family planning (FP) and reproductive health (RH) situation and practices of the 18 villages, which are located in seven cities and one municipality.

HPV AWARENESS AMONG LATINA IMMIGRANTS AND ANGLO‐AMERICAN WOMEN IN THE SOUTHERN UNITED STATES: CULTURAL MODELS OF CERVICAL CANCER RISK FACTORS AND BELIEFS

Latinas have higher cervical cancer age-adjusted incidence and mortality rates, and present with more advanced disease compared to non-Latino whites. This study used a cross-sectional mixed methods survey design, exploring knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs regarding the human papillomavirus (HPV), the HPV vaccine, and cervical cancer screening with four groups of women (Mexican, Honduran, Puerto-Rican, Anglo American; n=80) attending low-income health clinics along with one group of Latina health care workers (n=17). Data analyses included univariate frequency distributions and one-way ANOVA tests for quantitative data, thematic and content analysis of qualitative data, and cultural consensus analysis using the covariance method to compare groups. Results indicate overall cultural consensus for the five subgroups for both the agree/disagree questions and rankings on cervical cancer risk factors. However, differences were found between Latina women compared to Anglo American patients and health care clinic workers around birth control practices as possible causal factors for cervical cancer. Other findings suggested greater awareness of HPV and the HPV vaccine among Anglo American and Puerto Rican women compared to Mexican and Honduran women. Mexican and Honduran women were less likely to be aware of HPV and the HPV vaccine, and more likely to be uninsured and without a regular health care provider. Results point to the need to assess knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs in specific subgroups experiencing cervical cancer disparities to identify target areas for health education. Study findings will be used to inform the development and pilot testing of health education curriculum modules for cervical cancer prevention.

Family planning practice and related factors of married women in Ethiopia

The family planning (FP) practice rate of Ethiopian women of reproductive age is lower than in most other sub-Saharan African countries. To examine the status of FP practice and identify intrapersonal, interpersonal and community factors associated with FP practice among married Ethiopian women in a rural area. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with a convenient sample of 193 married women of reproductive age. A structured questionnaire, which was modified based on the Ethiopian Demographic Health Survey, was used. Multiple logistic regression analysis was conducted to identify factors associated with FP practice at three levels: intrapersonal, interpersonal and community. Almost 67% of women were currently using at least one FP method and most women obtained FP methods from the public health sector. Short-term methods such as pills and injections were most commonly used. FP practice was significantly associated with willingness to use long-term or permanent FP methods in future and spousal discussion about FP. Both intrapersonal and interpersonal factors were related to FP practice. Community factors, however, need to be further assessed using various methods to plan a comprehensive and more culturally acceptable community-based FP program. Caution is needed to generalize the findings because of the convenient sample, but community-based FP programs emphasizing long-term or permanent methods and male involvement in FP counseling would be successful strategies to increase FP practice. Nurses and midwives need to be trained to provide knowledge and skills for long-term or permanent FP methods for service quality.

Comparison of the Level of Awareness of Parents Towards Family Planning and Vaccination Practices in Selected Slum Area of District Varanasi and Ghazipur

The present study was done for the comparison of the level of awareness of family planning and vaccination practices in the rural and urban-slum of Varanasi and Ghazipur (Uttar Pradesh). The sample of the study was divided into two groups, i.e. urban slum and rural parents. The sample size consisted of 300 parents, 150 from each one. The data was collected with the help of Interview schedule. Findings of the study indicate that parents from the urban as well as rural areas were less aware about the family planning measures and vaccination. The impacts of parent education were also assessed. It was found that after education, a parent gets more aware of these practices. Thus, there is an urgent need to launch a huge programme by the government or social organizations for parent education for better development of children.

Previous reproductive history and post-natal family planning among HIV-infected women in Ukraine

BACKGROUNDUkraine has the highest antenatal HIV prevalence in Europe. The national prevention of mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) programme has reduced the MTCT rate, but less attention has been given to the prevention of unintended pregnancy among HIV-positive women. Our objectives were to describe the reproductive health, condom use and family planning (FP) practices of HIV-positive childbearing Ukrainian women and to identify factors associated with different methods of post-natal contraception.METHODSHIV-infected childbearing women, diagnosed before or during pregnancy, were enrolled prospectively in a post-natal cohort study in four regional HIV/AIDS centres in Ukraine from December 2007. Logistic regression models were used to identify factors associated with post-natal FP practices.RESULTSData were available for 371 women enrolled by March 2009; 82% (n = 303) were married or cohabiting, 27% (97 of 363) reported a current HIV-negative sexual partner and 69% were diagnosed with HIV during their most recent pregnancy. Overall, 21% (75 of 349) of women were not using contraception post-natally (of whom 80% reported no current sexual activity), 50% (174 of 349) used condoms, 20% (74 of 349) relied solely/partially on coitus interruptus and 4% used hormonal methods or intrauterine device. Among married/cohabiting women, consistent use of condoms in the previous pregnancy [AOR 1.96 (95%CI 1.06–3.62)], having an HIV-positive partner [AOR 0.42 (0.20–0.87)], current sexual activity [AOR 4.53 (1.19–17.3)] and study site were significantly associated with post-natal condom use; 16% of those with HIV-negative partners did not use condoms. Risk factors for non-use of FP were lack of affordability [AOR 6.34 (1.73–23.2)] and inconsistent use of condoms in the previous pregnancy [AOR 7.25 (1.41–37.2)].CONCLUSIONSMore than 40% of HIV-positive women in this population are at risk of unintended pregnancy and the one in six women in HIV-discordant couples not using barrier methods risk transmitting HIV to their partners. Our study results are limited by the observational nature of the data and the potential for both measured and unmeasured confounding.

The Inadvertent Alliance of Anthony Comstock and Margaret Sanger: Abortion, Freedom, and Class in Modern America

This article investigates how moral-reformer Anthony Comstock, who helped outlaw the practice of birth control and to have abortion criminalized, and Margaret Sanger, founder of Planned Parenthood and birth-control activist, advanced their causes through the discourse of freedom and self-control. While Comstock's and Sanger's works are often seen in opposition, this article questions that positioning by pointing out how they both lobbied against accessible abortion using similar tactics. Finally, this article demonstrates how Comstock and Sanger, through different means, worked to present abortion as a depraved practice that would lead to the demise of American society. Presenting Comstock and Sanger side by side, this article shows one example of the reasons why it is problematic to use the language of rights and freedom to argue for fair and equal access to abortion.

Knowledge, attitude and practice of family planning following termination of pregnancy among Basotho women at Queen Elizabeth II Hospital, Maseru, Lesotho.

Mortality and morbidity due to unsafe abortion continue to pose a serious global threat to women‟s health and lives especially in developing countries like Lesotho because of complication of backstreet abortion. This study looks into the knowledge, attitudes and practice of Basotho women on family planning following termination of pregnancy at Queen Elizabeth II Hospital, Maseru, Lesotho.The study employed a cross sectional study design. The study was conducted among 143 Basotho women who were admitted and had termination of pregnancy done in Queen Elizabeth II Hospital, Maseru, Lesotho. Information about their knowledge, attitudes and practice of family planning were collected via survey questionnaire.One out of three Basotho women were knowledgeable of at least two (2) family planning methods and more than half of them have used at least one form of family planning method before. However, only a quarter of them were presently on post abortion family planning while about three out of four of them were had not counselled for post abortion family planning at discharge after been evacuated. Although 68.5% of Basotho women were knowledgeable about family planning, only 25.2% were categorized as having a high practice of family planning while 20.3% were classified as having positive attitude about family planning. The practice and perception of Basotho women in Lesotho about family planning methods is low and many of them were not counselled for post abortion family planning at discharge after been evacuated. It is essential that the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare (MOHSW) be involved in promoting health education about the importance of family planning and the Ministry of Education (MOE) should introduce or resuscitate family health education in schools.

Long-term effects of family planning and other determinants of fertility on population and environment: agent-based modeling evidence from Wolong Nature Reserve, China

The practice of family planning has a long history, but its environmental implications have not often been considered. Using data from Wolong Nature Reserve for the conservation of the world-famous giant pandas in China, we employ a spatially explicit agent-based model to simulate how family-planning and other fertility-related decisions may affect human population, household number, and panda habitat over time. Simulation results indicate that (1) population size has the shortest time lag in response to changes in family-planning decisions, and panda habitat has the longest time lag; (2) the amount of panda habitat is more sensitive to factors affecting number of households than those affecting population size; (3) although not large in quantity nor changing landscape fragmentation substantially, the associated changes in habitat are in good areas for the panda. This study offers a novel approach to studying long-term demographic and environmental effects of family-planning and fertility-related decisions across space.

The practice of birth control and historical fertility change: Introduction

This introduction discusses the contributions in the special issue. The articles present results concerning the practice of birth control, mainly at the family level. They represent different analytical approaches where both interviews, letters, surveys and micro-level data have been used. The European fertility decline has made a fundamental change to the societies in the 20th and 21st centuries. Birth control spreads rapidly. Research in this field requires both qualitative and quantitative studies, where both approaches contribute to different perspectives on the transition. The articles in the issue discuss several themes in relation to birth control, of which three are developed in the introduction. These are gender and fertility, gender and health and finally how to control fertility. The presented results demonstrate the importance of including gender in the analyses of the fertility decline. A gender perspective makes it natural to consider historical persons as agents. It is also necessary to acknowledge that we should not treat the married couple as a single unit. They may have conflicting interests, something that several of the articles illustrate. One aspect we would like to emphasize is how health problems can influence the will to have more children and this affects birth control. This is a theme that in different forms is taken up by several of the authors. Finally, families practiced birth control with several different methods that also changed throughout the married years, thus demonstrating a flexibility that is often overlooked in conventional methods for the analysis of fertility.

Knowledge and practice of family planning among antenatal care attendees at Nnewi, south east Nigeria

Entrenching an effective family planning program has being a major challenge in Sub Saharan Africa. Determining the knowledge, attitude and practice of family planning among the women is very necessary in order to achieve success. The aim of this study iS to determine the knowledge, and practice of family planning among antenatal women in Nnewi, South East, Nigeria. A descriptive cross sectional study of 356 women attending antenatal clinic at Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi, Nigeria was carried out over a 5-month period. With the aid of pre-tested interviewer-administered semi structured questionnaires, information on biosocial characteristics, knowledge of, and practice of family planning as well as sources of information on family planning were obtained from the respondents. Data was analysis was done with Epi info statistical package, version 3.5.2 (2008) Three hundred and forty (95.5%) of the respondents knew about family planning out of which 260 (76.5%) had ever used a modern method. The male condom (256; 75.3%) and the natural method (Billings method) (150; 44.1%) were the commonly known methods. Also the commonest used methods were the male condom (144; 55.4%) and Billings method (96; 36.9%). Birth spacing (248; 72.9%) and limiting births (138, 40.6%) were mainly identified as the benefits of family planning and only 6 (1.7%) of the respondents identified family planning as being important in the reduction of maternal mortality. The major sources of information on family planning were health workers (224; 65.9%) and the radio (126; 37.1%). The knowledge and practice of family planning has improved among our women. However, the methods commonly used are those associated with high failure rates. Family panning program managers should recognize this limitation. There is need for public sensitization on the correct use of the Billings method and the male condom. Ultimately, our women should be encouraged to accept the more reliable methods of family planning.

Policies and practices of fertility control under the state socialism

The socialist state run modernization produced low fertility throughout Eastern Europe. Fertility rates started falling soon after the end of the Second World War quickly reaching below replacement levels in many areas. This article examines the state responses to the falling fertility as well as birth control practices that individuals relied on in order to maintain small families. After outlining some common features of population policies under the state socialism, the article focuses on family planning policies in Yugoslavia. It is argued that liberal population policy and uninterrupted liberal abortion legislation in Yugoslavia, resulted, among other reasons, from the communist leadership's commitment to national and gender equality, respectively. It is further argued that gender hierarchy within the marriage and family remained almost untouched by the socialist project of women's emancipation and that these hierarchical gender relations shaped birth control practices in specific ways.

O910 Barriers and perceptions regarding different contraceptives and family planning practices amongst men and women of reproductive age in rural Pakistan: A qualitative study

O910 Barriers and perceptions regarding different contraceptives and family planning practices amongst men and women of reproductive age in rural Pakistan: A qualitative study

Male involvement in family planning: women's perception.

To assess the knowledge of mothers of under-five children brought to immunisation centres of contraceptive methods applicable by males and their perceptions of the roles of males in family planning. This cross-sectional descriptive study involved a questionnaire interview of mothers who came to immunise their children at five public immunisation centres in Port Harcourt. Data entry and analysis employed EPI-Info version 6. Amongst the 558 mothers interviewed, the contraceptive prevalence rate was 5.6% and 85.6% of them knew at least a family planning method for males. About 15.8% would depend on their spouses for choice of contraceptive methods and 52.7% would discontinue family planning if their spouses objected. About 33.5% of the spouses had used some form of contraception while only 22.1% of the females recognised that male involvement could impact on the acceptance rate of family planning services. Despite their knowledge of safe child spacing, about 53% of the respondents delivered within shorter intervals and had significantly more pregnancies/children that they would have had if they were in 'control' of their reproductive health decisions. The spouses, despite being significantly older, more educated, with higher level jobs, and in-charge of the reproductive health decision in the home, did not contribute to the knowledge of the women and their practices of family planning. Despite the advantaged position of males in family matters, their roles in family planning remains largely unutilised. If the acceptance of family planning must improve, males should also be targeted by family planning programmes.

How Contraceptive Use Affects Birth Intervals: Results of a Literature Review

Short birth intervals can have adverse consequences for maternal and infant outcomes. Optimal birth spacing is often presumed to be achieved through the practice of family planning and use of contraceptives, yet most of the available research does not address explicitly the contribution of contraceptive-method use to birth spacing or maternal and infant survival. We conducted a systematic literature review to assess the body of evidence linking contraceptive use to birth-interval length. Fourteen studies published in English between 1980 and 2008 met our eligibility criteria for inclusion. The findings from these studies are mixed but suggest that the use of contraceptives is protective against short birth intervals. Although results are favorable, many of the studies and methodologies employed are dated. More current research is needed to determine the impact of contraceptive-method use on birth-interval length in order to inform the promotion of family planning for reducing maternal and infant morbidity and mortality through birth spacing.

Do Mothers’ Knowledge and Practice of ‘Child Survival Strategies’ Affect the Nutritional Status of Their Children?

A set of activities collectively called ‘Child Survival Strategies’ (CSS) have been demonstrated to reduce morbidity and mortality in the under-5 year old children. But Under-5 mortality has been consistently high in the past ten years in Nigeria and whether this was due to lack of knowledge or practice of these strategies is not known. It was therefore necessary to evaluate mothers’ knowledge and practice of these activities. A descriptive cross-sectional study of nursing mothers and their children attending well-baby clinics in Ibadan was designed. Two hundred and forty nursing mothers and their children were recruited from three types of well baby clinics (university teaching hospital, state maternity hospital and primary care health centers) in the Ibadan North local government area of Oyo state, Nigeria. Interviewer-administered questionnaire were used to obtain information from mothers about knowledge and practice of breastfeeding, childhood immunizations, oral rehydration, growth monitoring, family planning and relevance of female education to child survival. Anthropometric measurements of the children were taken to determine ‘wasting’, ‘stunting’ and ‘underweight’. Result of the analyses showed that majority of the mothers (74%) were married and 17% were single, 31.3% had completed primary and/or secondary education, 16.7% had no formal education while 51.8% had tertiary education. Exclusive breast-feeding was practiced by 67.5%, oral rehydration therapy by 78.3%, growth monitoring and promotion by 7.5%. Timely and complete immunization was practiced by 93.8% for BCG, 80.4% for one dose, 60.4% for two doses and 49.2% for three doses of DPT and oral polio vaccines, 53.8% for measles and 12.1% for hepatitis B. About 55% of the mothers were currently using family planning methods. Sixty-three percent of the children were underweight, 68% were stunted and 23% were wasted. There was no significant relationship between mothers’ practice of CSS and nutrition of the children. Mothers’ education was negatively correlated to ‘wasting’ in the children. This study reaffirms the importance of female education in the practice of CSS and good nutritional outcomes in children. Basic knowledge of child health, nutrition and related issues should continue to be made available to women and be included in the school curricula. Practice of all the CSS components should be encouraged even at the community level.

Family-planning practices among women with diabetes and overweight and obese women in the 2002 National Survey For Family Growth.

OBJECTIVETo examine contraceptive practices among diabetic women and obese women.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODSWe analyzed the responses of 5,955 participants aged 20–44 years in the 2002 National Survey for Family Growth. Diabetes, BMI, desire for pregnancy, history of infertility treatment, sexual activity, parity, and demographic variables (age, race/ethnicity, education, marital status, income, insurance, and smoking history) were obtained by self-report. Lack of contraception was defined as absence of hormonal-, barrier-, or sterilization-based methods. Associations among contraception, diabetes, and BMI category were assessed in multivariable logistic regression models in nonsterile, sexually active women.RESULTSIn unadjusted comparisons among sexually active women who were not sterilized, women with diabetes were more likely to lack contraception than women without diabetes (odds ratio [OR] 2.61 [95% CI 1.22–5.58]). Women with BMI ≥35 kg/m2 were more likely to lack contraception than women with BMI <25 kg/m2(1.63 [1.16–2.28]), but associations between contraception use and lesser degrees of overweight and obesity were not significant. In multivariable models, women who were older (aged ≥30 vs. 20–29 years), were of non-Hispanic black race, were cohabitating, had a history of infertility treatment, and desired or were ambivalent about pregnancy were significantly more likely to lack contraception. The associations among diabetes, BMI, and contraception were no longer significant after these adjustments.CONCLUSIONSOlder women with diabetes and obesity who desire pregnancy, regardless of pregnancy intention, should be targeted for preconceptive management.