Utilization Of Family Planning Methods Research Articles

Socio-Cultural Factors Affecting the Use of Modern Family Planning Methods by Married Men in Omala Local Government Area, Kogi State, Nigeria

The use of contraceptives is one of the modern family planning methods across the globe, but not free of the influence of socio-cultural factors. Hence, this study examined the socio-cultural factors influencing the practice of family planning among married men in the Omala Local Government Area. The specific objectives of the study included ascertaining if married men in Omala LGA were aware of modern family planning methods, an investigation into the assessment and utilization of family planning methods, determining the perceived benefits of the practice of family planning methods, identifying the perceived hindrances to its usage and examined the strategies to improve on the practice of family planning among marked men in Omala LGA. Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was used to test the research hypothesis. The theory of the Health Believe Model was used to buttress the study and by utilizing survey research design, a total of 306 copies of the questionnaire were distributed among the respondents of which 235 copies were completed and returned. The results showed that 51% of the married men in Omala LGA were not aware of modern family planning methods while 34% of the respondents had no access to the utilization of modern family planning methods. The results also revealed that the socio-cultural factors affecting modern family planning methods among married men in the study area were cross-cultural differences, religious beliefs and practices, gender roles, fertility desire and number of living children, childbearing practice, partner discussion and approval. It was found also that reduction in the economic and emotional burden of parenthood, improvements in maternal health and child survival etc were the perceived benefits of modern methods of Family Planning. It was also discovered that the perceived hindrances to the practice of family planning methods included lack of knowledge, limited supplies, high cost of contraceptives, cultural and personal objectives etc. The study further found that adequate sensitization programmes by both health workers and religious organisations should be carried out among their followers on the importance of family planning practice and thereby enhancing their reproductive health. The study concluded that there were significant socio-cultural factors influencing the practice of modern family planning methods in the study area and therefore recommended that the local government through healthcare centres should create awareness programmes as also suggested by the respondents on the use of modern family planning methods in the area.

Factors influencing the utilization of the Modern Family Planning (MFP) method under the National Health Insurance in Indonesia: An analysis of the 2017 IDHS

Background: Indonesia recently implemented a National Health Insurance program while simultaneously grappling with the challenge of unmet family planning needs. Objective: This study aimed to examine the correlation between health insurance ownership and the utilization of family planning methods among married/in-union women in Indonesia. Methods: This study employed secondary data analysis using the 2017 Indonesian Demography and Health Survey (IDHS). The analysis included a sample of 18,411 married/in-union women. Univariate, bivariate (Chi-square test), and multivariate (binary logistic regression) analyses were conducted to examine the relationship between health insurance ownership and the utilization of family planning methods. Results: The analysis revealed that a small proportion of individuals with health insurance utilized family planning services. Several factors were found to be associated with the utilization of family planning services, including ownership of health insurance, women's age, family planning decision-maker, socioeconomic status (as measured by being in the richest quintile), and higher education attainment. Conclusion: The findings of this study provide important insights for policymakers and public health practitioners regarding the integration of national health insurance programs and family planning initiatives in Indonesia. It is crucial to address the low utilization rate of family planning services among those with health insurance. Future research should focus on fostering collaboration among all stakeholders to promote comprehensive education on freely accessible contraceptive methods, aiming to bridge the gap between policy implementation and effective utilization of family planning services.

Evaluation of Factors that Contribute to Low Utilization of Methods for Family Planning Among Adolescents at Adjumani Hospital, Adjumani District

Globally, approximately 80 million unintended pregnancies worldwide are accounted for low utilization of family planning (FP) methods during adolescent and postpartum period. Young people’s sexual and reproductive health affects their lives and the health of the global community. The purpose of this study was to find out factors that contribute to low utilization of Family Planning Methods among adolescents attending family planning clinic at Adjumani Hospital, Adjumani District. A cross-sectional and descriptive study which employed quantitative method of data collection was used for a period of four weeks and the study was conducted at Family Planning clinic in Adjumani Hospital. A purposive sampling method was used. Only 45 adolescent aged 12 to 20 years old attending Family Planning clinic freely assented/consented to participate in the study. The results showed 25 (56%) of the adolescent were of age range 18-20 years and 5 (11%) who were 12-14 years. 31 (69%) respondents agreed that their culture allowed the use of FP method. Only 14 (31%) participants said that their culture does not allow the use of family planning method and revealed that FP affects their fertility. They also said that the culture considered it as a crime in the community. Nearly 38 (84%) have ever visited family planning clinic while very few 7 (16%) have not visited, most 27 (71%) were attended by Nurse while only few 3 (8%) were attended by Doctor. The results from this study shows that respondents’ family planning use conflict with their cultural/religious belief and majority claimed that family planning encourages cheating in relationship. Keywords: Adolescents, Family Planning, fertility, condoms

A STUDY OF USAGE OF CONTRACEPTIVES AMONG WOMEN IN REPRODUCTIVE AGE GROUP

Family planning is very important for population stabilization. It also helps to improve the reproductive health of women. Public health development is affected by utilization of family planning methods. Family planning affects the socio economic condition of the country. The objective of the study is to understand the usage of contraceptive among women staying in urban slums. It was observed that women still have reservations in adopting contraceptive methods. The overall use of different contraceptive is very poor. There is need to create awareness about family planning methods through health education and motivate people regarding contraceptive use

Evaluation of the Factors that Affect Family Planning Methods in Clients Attending Maternal Child Health Services at Kyabugimbi Health Centre IV, Bushenyi District, Uganda

Family planning can help reduce maternal mortality by reducing the number of pregnancies, the number of abortions, and the proportion of births at high risk in Bushenyi District. It has been estimated that meeting women’s need for modern contraceptive use would prevent about one quarter to one third of all maternal deaths. This study was aimed at assessing the factors affecting utilization of family planning methods among clients attending child health (MCH) Clinic at Kyabugimbi health Centre IV. A cross-sectional study design was used. According to this study, most of the respondents, were aged 25-34(48%), had no formal education (60%), married(45%) by marital status, peasants (65%) by occupation, while by religion, majority were protestants (41%). Majority (87%) had ever heard about family planning while the minority (13%) had never. The sources of information were health workers (36%), 30% radio and 20% from friends. 38% of the clients reported to be using at least one method of family planning while the majority (56%) was not. Majority of participants reported to be using injecta-plan (14%), pill-plan (9%), condoms (6%), IUDs (4%) and minority (2%) calendar and 6% reported to be using other methods not listed above. This study revealed that majority of the clients reported not to utilize family planning services because they feared side effects (83%), 75% could not afford to travel long distance to the health facility, 67% reported that their religions were against the use of family planning methods while 41% reported that they were not effective in preventing pregnancy. Holding family planning campaigns, educating these clients about the benefits of family planning as well as giving them detailed information in order to put an end to the misconceptions and false beliefs they have about family planning services. More research should be carried on bigger populations for instance referral hospitals to capture larger sample sizes and urban settings. Keywords: Family planning, maternal mortality, abortions, contraceptives.

Utilization of Family Planning Methods and associated factors among women of reproductive age group in Sunsari, Nepal

Background and objectives: Family planning not only improves women’shealth but also promotes gender equality, better child health, and education, including poverty reduction. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess the utilization of family planning methods and associated factors in Sunsari, Nepal. Materials and methods: A cross-sectional analytical study was conducted among women of the reproductive age group (15-49 years) in Sunsari in 2020. Non-probability purposive sampling was used to collect information from 212 respondents through face-to-face interviews using a Semi-structured interview schedule from ward no 1 of Barju rural municipality. Descriptive and inferential analysis (binary logistic regression)were used to find the association of utilization of family planning methods with selected demographic variables. All the variables with a p-value <0.1 in bivariate analysis were included in multivariate analysis. A p-value of <0.05 was considered to indicate statistical significance at a level of significance of 5%. Results: This study showed that the mean age and standard deviation of the respondents was 26±7.03 and 91.5 % of respondents’ age at marriage was less than 20 years.Likewise,67.5% of respondents use any methods of family planning and 55.2% of respondents use family planning services from the government health facility. Furthermore, education ((AOR 1.579, CI 1.013-2.462), husband’s occupation (AOR1.095,CI 0.744-1.610), type of family ((AOR 2.741, CI 1.210-6.210), and no of the living son ((AOR 0.259, CI 0.077-0.872) are the factors associated with the utilization of family planning methods. Conclusion: This study concludes that two-thirds of the reproductive age women utilize family planning methods. Furthermore, education, husband’s occupation, type of family, and no of living son are the factors associated with the utilization of family planning methods. This reflects that awareness through mass media including behavioral communication is needed to increase the utilization of family planning methods.

Factors Associated with Utilization of Modern Family Planning Methods among Married Women of Tharu Community of Madhuwan Municipality in Bardiya District of Nepal

INTRODUCTION: The use of modern family planning methods varies by province in Nepal from a low of 37% in Province 4 to a high of 49% in Province 3 There is no previous study has documented on the factors associated with utilization of modern family planning methods among married women of Tharu community in Bardiya district of Nepal, so this study is expected to provide information on influencing factors and hindering factors for utilization of family planning methods and its prevalence. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A Community based cross-sectional to find out factors associated with utilization of modern family planning method among married women of Tharu community of Madhuwan Municipality in Bardiya district of Nepal. Multistage cluster sampling was adopted. Sample size was calculated as 383. Face-to-face interview technique was adopted to collect data. Chi-square test was applied. A p-value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: Among all respondents (n=383), the current users of modern family planning methods were 72.3%. More than one fourth (28.7%) of the respondents were currently using sterilization family planning method. DMPA, OCP, Implant, Condom and IUCD current users were 17%, 10.7%, 8.6%, 4.4% and 2.9% respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Finding showed that most of the respondents were using female sterilization FP method which was only available at hospital or camp setting. So, the government should manage such an environment for family planning so that it is easily accessible to every desired couple.

Perception and practice of family planning in the extended postpartum period

Background: During the postpartum period, family planning (FP) can prevent about 30% of maternal mortality and 10% of child mortality if couples space their pregnancies more than 2 years apart. Conversely, closely spaced pregnancies within the first year postpartum increase the risks of preterm birth, low birth weight, and small-for-gestational-age babies. Objective: To determine the perception and practice of family planning in the extended postpartum period. Methodology: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted among women in the extended postpartum period, attending the Gynaecology clinic, family planning clinic, and infant welfare clinic of the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja, Lagos. Information obtained includes socio-demographic data, spouse education, and income, knowledge of, attitude towards, and utilization of family planning methods along with the partner’s involvement in decision-making towards arrival at choice methods. The data obtained were processed and analyzed using SPSS version 16.0 Results: The majority of the respondents (92.7%) were aware of family planning but only 33.7% are currently using a modern method. The most known methods were condoms (72.4%) and injectable (60.5%) while the predominant source of information was the electronic media in 78.4% of respondents. About half of the respondents (53.1%) had their male partners using condoms while three-quarters used them to space children. Three-quarters of those women not currently on contraception intended to adopt a method anytime within the extended postpartum period. Only the progressive increase in infant age showed a statistically significant relationship with contraceptive use. Conclusion: Despite the high incidence of awareness of family planning, only one-third of the respondents were currently using a method. It was recommended that repackaged antenatal and postnatal health talks should address various methods of family planning and their safety

Effect of Media Exposure on Women Utilization of Family Planning Methods and their Attitude during COVID 19 Pandemic

Effect of Media Exposure on Women Utilization of Family Planning Methods and their Attitude during COVID 19 Pandemic

Use of Family Planning Methods among Postpartum Mothers in Bharatpur Metropolitan City

INTRODUCTION: Low utilization of modern contraceptives immediately after birth remains low in Nepal. Hence the Government of Nepal has given significant importance on postpartum family planning to address the unmet need of family planning in Nepal. The aim of the present study was to assess the prevalence of postpartum family planning Utilization among women and its associated factors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A descriptive, cross- sectional, study was conducted among 133 mothers who had one year of children. The data collection tool was a semi structured interview schedule. Data were entered using Epi data 3.1 software and analyzed using SPSS 16. The statistical analyses carried out were descriptive (frequencies and percentages) and bivariate (chi-square test). RESULTS: The current utilization of family planning methods was 23.3% and utilization of family planning in the past year was 28.6%. The Depo -Provera (38.7%) is the most commonly used family planning method among respondents. About half of the respondents (45.9%) did not get family planning counselling during ANC Visit. Husband Occupation (p-value =0.004), family planning counselling during ANC Visit (p-value =0.017), Knowledge on appropriate birth space (p-value =0.017) and IUCD use (p-value=0.042). CONCLUSIONS: Contraceptive utilization among postpartum mothers was found to be extremely low which ultimately increases health risk to maternal health due to chances of unintended pregnancies.

Assessment of knowledge of ASHA workers regarding MCH services and practices followed by mothers - A field study.

Accredited social health activist (ASHA) workers act as a "bridge" between rural people and health service outlets and play a central role in achieving national health and population policy goals. According to the National Family Health Survey (NFHS) V (2019-2021) data, infant mortality rate (IMR) is still high in rural areas (32.4 per 1000 live births) in Punjab, compared to urban areas (20.1). Maternal mortality ratio (MMR) is also high (129 per lakh), according to sample registration system (SRS) 2016-2018 data. In this descriptive, cross-sectional study conducted at RHTC, Bhadson, we assessed the knowledge of ASHA workers regarding maternal and child health (MCH) services and their provision by them to their beneficiaries (mothers with children aged 0-6 months). Out of the total 196 ASHA workers, 72 were selected randomly to assess their knowledge, while 100 beneficiary mothers were interviewed face to face to assess the services provided by the ASHA workers. Almost 65.2% of ASHA workers were above 35 years of age. Majority of the ASHA workers (40/72) replied that average weight gain in pregnancy is 10 kg. Very few, that is, 17 (23.6%), ASHA workers knew that breastfeeding should be started within the first hour after delivery of the baby. Counseling regarding nutrition, birth preparedness, institutional delivery, and birth registration was given by ASHA workers to 75%-85% of mothers. There was statistically significant improvement in the practices by mothers with the counseling given by ASHA workers regarding pre-lacteal feed, utilization of family planning methods, and delaying early bathing. The study concludes that ASHA workers have good knowledge regarding various aspects of antenatal period, but when it comes to postnatal period and care of the newborn, there are some lacunae. These aspects of newborn care need to be reinforced into the refresher trainings of the ASHA workers.

Knowledge, practice and barriers in utilization of family planning methods among married couples of urban and rural areas of Sikkim

Background: Overpopulation continues to be the main problem around the globe. Family planning also promotes gender equality as well as educational and economic empowerment for women. It is equally important for men to step forward to be at par with women in sharing their family planning responsibility.Objectives: To compare knowledge, practices and analyze what factors may affect the barriers in utilization family planning methods among married couples in rural and urban area of Sikkim.Method: This is descriptive comparative research with sample size of 200 married couples, 100 couples from each urban and rural area, within the age group of 18- 49 years were recruited through stratified random sampling technique from randomly selected urban and rural areas of West Sikkim. Data was collected through structured interview schedule.Result: The married couples in urban residents (92% males, 60% females) had higher scores on family planning knowledge than rural residents (72% males, 52% females). Significant difference was noted between knowledge level of the males of urban and rural area (3.01, P

Utilization of family planning methods among currently married women in Pakistan: Insight from Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey 2017–2018

In Pakistan, like other developing countries, utilization of family planning methods is a serious public health concern among married women. Researchers in the study focused on utilization of family planning methods among married women and their exposure to media messages. The researchers used retrospective analysis of secondary data of 3334 married women. Our research findings reveal that married women have a very limited access to media service messages promoting utilization of family planning methods. It is discussed that women with exposure to media messages about the utilization of family planning significantly utilized birth control behavior than women who had not heard and seen any media message. The authors concluded that married women in the country particularly in rural areas have a very limited access to media messages promoting family planning which causes non-utilization of family planning methods. It is recommended that different programs and awareness messages on media should be started to promote family planning and married women's access to media programs should be ensured.

The Utilization of Family Planning Methods Among Rural Women In Ogun State, Nigeria

Family planning implies spacing and timing of child births. However, despite many actions put in place by government at all levels to sensitize citizen on the need for family planning; most Nigeria population still does not practice it as expected. Thus, the study assessed the utilization of family planning methods among rural women in Ogun State. Multistage sampling technique was used to select 120 respondents and structured questionnaire schedule was used for the data collection. Data collected were analysed using both descriptive and inferential analysis.Result shows that majority of the rural women had mean age of 33±10, 45.0% were Muslims, 57.5% had secondary education, 77.5% married, 50.0% traders, 39.1% had between 5 and 6 persons in their households, 42.5% earned between 35,001 and 60,000 monthly and 66.7% of the were member of social association. Also, 60.8% had low awareness of contraceptive methods. In addition, 56.7% had high knowledge of family planning methods, most of the rural women sourced information on family planning through television. Also, increase in weight experienced by the respondents were the health factors militating against the utilization of family planning methods by the rural women as 50.8% had high utilization of family planning methods used by the rural women. There was a significant relationship between member of social association (?2=4.268, p<0.05), awareness of contraceptive method utilize by rural women (r=0.761, p<0.05), knowledge (r=0.617, p<0.002), source of information (r=-0.119, p<0.05), factors (r=0.201, p<0.05) and level of utilization of family planning methods.It is therefore concluded that most of the women had high knowledge of family planning methods but only utilized the commons ones available to them. It is therefore recommended that educative trainings should be organized for the women to enhance their usage of other methods to ensure a secured child bearing.

Knowledge, Attitude and Utilization of Family Planning Methods among Postpartum Women in A Selected Tertiary Care Facility in India

Background & aim: Utilization of family planning services among married women in India, especially postpartum family planning, is poor, with only around one fifth of currently married women using a spacing method. Womenâ��s awareness about PPFP methods in India is also limited. This study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitude and utilization of family planning methods among postpartum women in India. Methods: A cross-sectional survey of 284 postpartum mothers was conducted in a well-baby clinic of a tertiary care facility using convenience sampling. Respondents were interviewed using self-developed, pretested and validated tools. Data was analyzed with STATA software version 31.1 using descriptive statistical methods. Results: Almost two third of the mothers did not receive family planning counseling in the antenatal period (66.1) and over half did not receive it in the immediate postpartum period (53.5). The majority (66.6) did not use any contraceptive method. The mean knowledge score was 7.82i�±3.90 out of a total score of 16 points, and the mean attitude score was 33.53i�±3.90 out of a total score of 50 points. Knowledge of postpartum mothers related to the family planning methods was significantly associated with their educational status, number of antenatal visits, and use of contraceptives, while the use of contraceptive methods was significantly associated with resumed sexual activity.  Conclusion: Lower scores on knowledge about PPFP compared to attitudes to PPFP emphasize the need for innovative approaches to make postpartum women aware about healthy reproductive practices including adoption of FP methods of their choice.

Psycho-Social Predictors of Utilization of Modern Family Planning Methods among Married Men and Women in Ijebu- Igbo

This study examines the knowledge of family planning, perceived fear of side effects and social variables as predictors of utilization of family planning methods in Ijebu-Igbo. Opinions of two hundred and fifty participants who are married and residents of Ijebu Igbo were sampled using questionnaire. Five hypotheses were generated and tested using Pearson Product Moment Correlation and regression analysis. Results showed that marital status accounted for 26% of variance in utilization of family planning method, with a regression coefficient of ? = -.26 (P< .01). The five blocks of predictor variables account for only 17% of the variance; employment status, also significantly predicted utilization of family planning method (? = -.21, P < .05) explaining, together with marital status, 26% of the variance in utilization of family planning method (accounting for R2 – change of .11, P < .01). Results also showed that the lower the perceived fear of side effect, the better their level of utilization of family planning method. Religion has significant influence on the utilization of family planning methods which confirmed second hypothesis. The implications of the study were discussed and it was recommended that health education that will be tailored around knowledge of  family planning should be organized both by governmental and non-governmental organizations since it was found that knowledge of family planning methods is key to their utilization.

Utilization of Family Planning Methods Among Postpartum Mothers in Kailali District, Nepal.

BackgroundPostpartum contraceptives use offers a distinctive opportunity to maintain appropriate birth spacing for health benefits to both mother and child. However, the concept of postpartum family planning (PPFP) is poorly understood and contraceptives use during the postpartum period remains low in Nepal. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the factors affecting the utilization of family planning (FP) methods among postpartum mothers in the Kailali district, Nepal.MethodsA community-based cross-sectional study was conducted between September and October 2013 among postpartum mothers in Kailali district. Simple random sampling was applied to select a total of 427 study participants. A pre-tested standard semi-structured questionnaire was used for gathering data. Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20.0.ResultsOverall, 32.8% of the postpartum women used different types of contraceptives. Condoms (37.1%) followed by Depo-Provera 29.3% were the most used postpartum contraceptives. Half (50%) of the postpartum women had an unmet need for family planning. Multiple logistic regression model revealed that the occupation of husband [AOR=3.2 (95% CI: 2.0–6.00], past use of family planning methods [AOR=4.0 (95% CI:2.4–6.5)] and resumption of menstruation [AOR=2.5 (95% CI:1.6–4.1)] were significantly associated with the use of modern contraceptives during the first year of the postpartum period.ConclusionContraceptive uptake within the first year of postpartum was found to be low among women in the Kailali district, Nepal. Previous experience with the use of family planning methods, occupation of the husbands, and resumption of menstruation are important factors in the PPFP decisions of women in this population. Therefore, the family planning program should work on improving couples’ knowledge of the risk of pregnancy, fertility returning time and modern contraceptives use during the postpartum period targeting women whose husbands are in migrant occupations, who are not menstruating and who have not used FP before.

Undernutrition and its association with socio-demographic factors among pregnant women attending tertiary health care hospital in northern Maharashtra: a cross sectional study

Background: Maternal nutrition is one of the most important health and welfare problems among women in developing countries. Only limited research has been conducted on the prevalence and determinants of maternal nutritional status in Maharashtra. Particularly, data on the nutritional status of pregnant women are lacking. The aim of this was to assess prevalence and determinants of undernutrition among pregnant women attending antenatal care center.Methods: An institution based cross-sectional study was conducted during September to December, 2018. Randomly selected 303 pregnant women were included in the study. Nutritional status was estimated using mid-upper-arm circumference. Data on potential determinants of undernutrition were gathered using a structured questionnaire. Statistical analysis was done using logistic regression. p<0.05 at 95% confidence interval was considered as statistically significant.Results: Overall prevalence of under-nutrition among study participants was 21.8%. Using a logistic regression model, factors significantly associated with the under nutrition were rural residence (AOR=0.675; 95%CI 0.307-1.485), having less than three years duration of marriage (AOR=6.650;95%CI 2.268-19.501), living with joint family (AOR=4.128;95%CI 1.606-10.611), no utilization of family planning methods (AOR=0.319; 95%CI 0.131-0.775), less no. of ANC visit (AOR=3.253; 95%CI 1.342-7.888) and having less frequency of meal (AOR=0.319 (0.149-0.683). Remaining all factors like religion, education, occupation, family size, gravida, parity, consumption of iron and calcium tablet, getting USG done, anti-tetanus vaccination, support from family and husband were not found as significant risk factors for undernutrition.Conclusions: Integrated approach is must to combat malnutrition among pregnant women.

Contraceptive prevalence rate in women of reproductive age in a semi urban community of Islamabad

Objective: To determine the prevalence of utilization of family planning methods among married women of reproductive age in a semi urban community of Islamabad.
 Methodology: A cross-sectional survey was done using two stage sampling, including cluster and consecutive sampling techniques. A proportionate sample from each mohallas of Nurpur Shahan was taken to achieve our sample size. All married women of the reproductive age group (15-45 years) living with their husbands, not diagnosed as a case of infertility and permanent residents of Nurpur Shahan were included.
 Results: Total of 550 women were included in the study with mean age of 31.64 years. Majority of women 497 (94.7%) were currently married while 322 (59.9 %) were literate. Of all the women, 72 (13.2%) women were currently pregnant and only 62 (11.3%) had a planned pregnancy. Induced abortion was practiced once by 9 (1.8%) women and 21 (4.1%) had done it twice. 394 (72.8%) had knowledge of family planning methods and only 102 (19.5%) women were using family Planning methods currently.
 Conclusion: Miscellaneous challenges are involved to increase involvement of the women and their families in the use of family planning services. Health education campaigns at community level to increase awareness regarding different family planning methods are highly needed. Government needs to improve the LHWs services to increase the use of family planning methods and combat induced abortions as a method of contraception. Controlling population through sterilization after attaining a large family size should not be the preferred method of family Planning.

Male involvement in family planning in Northern Nigeria: A review of literature

Background: Demand and utilization of family planning (FP) in Northern Nigeria has been consistently low. Evidence from literature has demonstrated that male involvement in FP programming can be successful in increasing demand for FP services. Materials and Methods: A search of peer-reviewed and gray literature was carried out to explore the status of male awareness and utilization of FP methods, and the barriers to male involvement in FP, in Northern Nigeria. Results: Males in the region generally have a good awareness of FP. However, they had negative perceptions, low levels of usage of FP, and poor spousal communication about FP. Sociocultural and religious barriers played major roles in hindering male involvement in FP. Misconceptions about FP, such as that FP is a woman’s activity and that it also encourages promiscuity among women, were factors limiting its acceptance. Conclusion: There is a need to address the misconceptions and equip men with complete and correct information about FP. There is also a need for research on effective strategies to address the sociocultural and religious barriers to male involvement in FP in Northern Nigeria and the development of effective culturally sensitive male-involvement FP initiatives.