Population and Health InfoShare International Family Planning Perspectives, Vol. 31, No. 4, December 2005

Author: Guttmacher Institute

InfoShare Partner: Guttmacher Institute

Publication Date: December 2005

Type of Document: Article/Report/Paper

Topics: Abortion/post-abortion care, Behavior change interventions, Family planning, Gender, HIV/AIDS, general, HIV/AIDS prevention, HIV/AIDS care/treatment, Policy/Law, Reproductive health, general, Service delivery, Sexual health/STIs

Region: Global, Asia/Pacific, Latin America/Caribbean, Sub-Saharan Africa

Language: English

Additional information: A recent study in South Africa shows that nearly all pharmacists sell emergency contraception (EC), which is available there without a prescription, and that most have accurate knowledge about dosage, side effects and how to use EC. Almost half, however, believe the method should be available to women younger than 18, and more than half mistakenly believe that repeated use poses health risks. Misperceptions about the method and personal opinions on who should use it may affect women’s access to the pills. The article “Pharmacists’ Knowledge and Perceptions of Emergency Contraceptive Pills in Soweto and the Johannesburg Central Business District, South Africa,” by Kelly Blanchard of Ibis Reproductive Health, et al., appears in the December 2005 issue of International Family Planning Perspectives. Also in this issue: Though abortions are illegal in Uganda except when pregnancy endangers a woman’s life, an estimated 297,000—54 for every 1,000 women of fertile age—occur each year, according to recent surveys of health facilities and health professionals knowledgeable about conditions of abortion provision in Uganda. Because women seeking abortions rely primarily on untrained personnel using unsafe methods, 85,000 women are treated for abortion-related health complications each year, and unsafe abortion is the country’s leading cause of maternal death. At current rates, half of all Ugandan women will require treatment for complications related to abortion in their lifetimes, according to “The Incidence of Abortion in Uganda,” by Susheela Singh of the Guttmacher Institute, New York, NY, et al. In “Promoting Informed Choice: Evaluating a Decision-Making Tool for Family Planning Clients and Providers in Mexico,” authors Young Mi Kim of Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, et al. examine the impact of a two-sided flipchart created by the World Health Organization (WHO) to help patients and providers make family planning decisions. The researchers used videotapes of 13 providers meeting with patients in Mexico City to evaluate eye contact and communication between clients and providers, and then conducted in-depth interviews with the two groups. Both providers and patients found the tool useful. Family planning services in El Salvador should make efforts to involve men, according to “Pregnancy Intentions Among Salvadoran Fathers: Results from the 2003 National Male Reproductive Health Survey,” by Marion Carter of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, and Ilene S. Speizer of the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC. The authors analyzed data from 425 men on their partner’s most recent pregnancy ending in a live birth and found that almost half of the unintended pregnancies had occurred while the men were trying to avoid pregnancy. One in five men thought they and their partner had different intentions about the pregnancy. Believing that condoms do not reduce sexual pleasure and having a higher level of education are linked to using condoms consistently, according to “Gender and Relationship Differences in Condom Use Among 15–24-Year-Olds in Angola,\"by Ndola Prata of the University of California, Berkeley, CA, et al. The type of relationship young people are involved in and whether or not they associate using condoms with a lack of trust influence whether they use condoms. In an analysis of responses from nearly 2,000 adolescents in Luanda, Angola, to a national survey on knowledge, attitudes and practices, the authors found that two-fifths of all youth in regular and casual relationships reported using a condom the last time they had sex; however, condom use was negligible among married women, and fewer than one-fifth of respondents reported using condoms consistently.

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International Family Planning Perspectives, Vol. 31, No. 4, December 2005

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