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Journal Summary Women's Experience and Satisfaction with Emergency Contraception Original article by: Harvey, S.M.; Beckman, L.J.; Sherman, C. and Petitti, D. Unintended pregnancy is a major public health concern. Emergency contraception has the potential to reduce unintended pregnancy significantly. A typical regimen of emergency contraceptives includes one dose of estrogen and progestin that must be taken within 72 hours after unprotected intercourse, followed by another dose 12 hours later. The latest data available confirm that this regimen reduces the risk of pregnancy by 75%. To date, very little research has been done on women's experience and satisfaction with emergency contraception. The main purpose of this study was to explore these issues. The study involved structured telephone interviews with 235 women (aged 18 or older). The women received emergency contraceptive (EC) pills through a demonstration project at a Kaiser Permanente medical office in San Diego County. As part of the interview, women were asked about their previous contraceptive use, the situation that led to unprotected sex, side effects experienced from the EC pills, and their satisfaction with EC pills. The majority of women surveyed (70%) reported that they were using contraception prior to being given emergency contraceptive pills. Of these, 73% were using condoms. Not surprisingly, the most frequently reported situation leading to unprotected sex was that the condom broke or slipped (43%). Nearly all (99.6%) of the women found the EC pills easy to use, and most (90%) reported that the EC pills were effective in preventing pregnancy. Approximately three-quarters (77%) were very satisfied with their experience; 97% said they would only use the method in an emergency in the future. Of the women who informed their partners that they used the method, 92% agreed that using emergency contraceptive pills would not make their partners less willing to use other methods of contraception. Emergency contraception provides a back-up method for women who suffer from contraception failure, women who have been raped, women who miss the deadline for a contraceptive injection, or experience similar problems with using their contraceptives. It also can be used when sex occurs unexpectedly and without protection. One of the concerns about emergency contraception is that women may come to rely on it as a primary method rather than an emergency back-up. Most of the women in this study were already using contraception and experienced contraceptive failure (e.g., condom breakage). Further, the majority of women do not intend to use EC pills as their preferred method of contraception in the future. Complete
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