Population Council Research that makes a difference

2011 International Conference on Family Planning
29 November–2 December 2011

Abstract

"Characteristics and patterns of use of emergency contraception among urban women in Nigeria and Kenya"
Gwendolyn T. Morgan, Jill Keesbury, Paul Kuria, Lisa Calhoun, and Jean-Christophe Fotso

Background
Emergency Contraception Pills (ECPs) are not generally considered a regular method of family planning, and is still a relatively rare method of contraception, even among urban women in sub-Saharan Africa. However, in Kenya and Nigeria, there are indications that this method is gaining in popularity as a primary method of family planning, especially among women who have irregular, unplanned sex. This study examines questions of user characteristics, repeat use, and use of EC as a primary method of family planning among urban women in Nigeria and Kenya.

Methods
The Measurement Learning & Evaluation (MLE) Project and the Urban Reproductive Health Initiative (URHI) conducted large-scale quantitative household surveys with women and men from six cities in Nigeria and five cities in Kenya. Baseline surveys were carried out between September 2010 and April 2011 in Kenya and Nigeria. The women’s sample for Nigeria is projected to be over 14,000, and in Kenya the sample is 8,932 women. National census enumeration sampling frames were utilized in both countries and a total of 400–500 clusters were sampled within selected municipalities in each country. A household listing for all sampled enumeration areas was also performed and a representative sample of households was selected for interviews using pretested questionnaires. Double data entry and verification were performed, and sampling weights were calculated and applied. Stata 10.1 will be used to produce bivariate and multivariate results. These uniquely large urban surveys allow for a multivariate analysis of women who have used EC in the past 12 months, as well as a bivariate analysis of sexual behavior, purchase patterns, repeat use, and previous/current use of other methods of contraception.

Results
A preliminary analysis of the Kenya data reveal that 55% of all women have ever heard of emergency contraception, 12% of all sexually experienced women have ever used ECPs, and 5% of all sexually experienced women reported using ECPs in the past twelve months. Initial data from Nigeria show that 29% of all women have ever heard of EC, 7% of all sexually experienced women have ever used ECPs, and 2% of all sexually experienced women reported using ECPs in the past twelve months. Further detailed results will be shared.

Conclusions
Programs which seek to promote EC should understand characteristics, behaviors, and motivations of current users and potential users in order to design more meaningful programs and to target their interventions more effectively.

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