Abstract: Background: Although contraceptive use has increased in many developing countries yet unmet need for
family planning is an important public health issue because of its negative association with social and health outcomes
for both mothers and children. Understanding the underling reasons and the characteristics of women with unmet need
can help to design unmet need strategies. Aim of the work:To determine the magnitude and some of the underlying
factors of unmet need for contraception for a sample of fecund married women of reproductive age (15 – 49 years)
attending medical health center in Benha City. Subjects and methods: This cross sectional study was conducted on
four hundreds married women. Data were collected through a structured interview questionnaire sheet. It includes
socio-demographic data, KAP study, reproductive aspects, and quality of care of family planning services. The size of
the unmet need was estimated according to the standard EDHS 2008 definition of women with unmet need. Results:
This study revealed that the level of unmet need for contraception was 30%. The percentage of illiteracy was higher for
the unmet need group 33.3% and the percentage of working women was higher among contraceptive users 23.5%. None
of unmet need group 0.0% realize the correct concept of family planning. The attendance of health education sessions
about family planning was very low 11%. The majority of women with unmeet need (75%) believe that contraceptive
methods may be harmful. The main reasons for never use of family planning methods were current lactation and fear of
side effects (33% each) and that for discontinuation were the menstrual problems 59.4%. There was no significant
difference between women in the unmet and met need group regarding physical accessibility to services. Conclusion
and recommendations:The rate of unmeet need for family planning is still high. Family planning should have a public
health focus, concentrating on creating a supportive and active family planning program at multilevels starting from the
woman herself to the community as a whole and depend on the health education as the main strategy. |
