Emergency contraception: clients and practice of the method at the family planning unit of the obstetrics and gynecology department of the Ignace Deen national hospital

Abstract

Purpose:To determine the proportion of clients using emergency contraception at Maternity Hospital Ignace Deen National Hospital. Methodology: This was a prospective study of the analytical type over a period of 6 months (July 1st to December 31st, 2015) carried out at the Maternity Hospital Ignace Deen.

Results: Emergency contraception accounted for 30% of the demand for contraceptives in the service. The socio-demographic profile of the clients is that of a woman aged 20 to 24, nulliparous, single and educated. Health workers were the main source of information for both Emergency Contraception users (48.84%) and others (23.50%), while more than half (66.66%) Regular contraceptive staff had never heard of the morning after pill. Unprotected sex (30.34%), lack of contraception (15.86%), condom accident (3.45%) were the main circumstances for taking the "morning after pill". The effectiveness of the morning-after pill was recognized by 60.50% of users of Emergency Contraception. Pharmacy was the main point of supply for the morning after pill (76.80%), while the majority (66.70%) of other methods did not know where to buy the morning after pill.

Conclusion: The practice of emergency contraception in the service requires a public awareness campaign. This would improve his perception thereby reducing the rate of unwanted pregnancies.