A
prospective cross sectional study of 765 eligible multiparous women with
at least one previous living offspring was done at a major referral tertiary
set-up at LTMGH, Sion, Mumbai over a period of three months for sterilisation
and IUCD options.
The overall contraceptive awareness claimed was 100% but adequacy of awareness
was only 22%. Spouse and media were poor source of awareness but refusals
were minimum with spouse (36.23%), in laws (47.6%) and hospital (37.2%)
as source. Counseling done at two ANC refusals and only postpartum counseling
has maximum refusals. |
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| Introduction |
Eligible
multigravidae are the focus for family planning methods. The option of
sterilization of IUCD in this group sees an arena of
nonacceptance. This focussed our attention to study the correlation of
contraceptive awareness (TL and IUCD) and its nonacceptance to ?nd solutions
to this ever increasing problem that is retarding the National Progress. |
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AIMS
OF THE STUDY
1. To study the incidence of Contraceptive (TL and IUCD) awareness in
eligible multiparous
2. To study the adequacy of the awareness.
3. To study the source of awareness.
4. To study the relationship of refusals for contraception (TL and IUCD)
with time of awareness. |
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MATERIAL
AND METHODS
A prospective cross sectional study was carried out for 765 women over
a period of three months from Aug-Oct 2001 at LTMGH Sion, a major teaching
institute and 1416 bedded tertiary centre, Mumbai, India. |
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Recruitment
Criteria
Seven hundred sixty ?ve eligible healthy multiparous women with at least
two years old living previous offspring who had delivered normally during
the study period in the institute and had undergone counseling for sterilisation
and IUCD. |
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Protocol
Women recruited for study were individually interviewed for the contraceptive
option (Sterilisation or IUCD) in one of the three languages
(English, Hindi and Marathi) that they best understood. Their awareness
about the two methods were documented. The awareness was adequate when
they knew details regarding - The type of method (i.e. permanent/temporary),
duration of use, procedure know how, warning signs, major complications/side
effects, follow up. The time of awareness of the method were noted and
the reasons for refusals were probed into and recorded. |
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Variables
under study
Age, children and education wise distribution,
source, adequacy and timing of contraceptive
awareness. |
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| OBSERVATIONS
AND DISCUSSION |
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Incidence
of refusals
Of the 765 women under study, 81% of women refused sterilisation and 67%
refused IUCD after counselling. |
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Table
1 shows a high (95%) refusal for sterilisation in the twenty to
twenty ?ve younger age group and a lower IUCD refusal compared
to the other two age groups. The more than 30 years age group
has high refusals for sterilisation and IUCD and this group is
less receptive to changes in contraceptive methods. Hence it is
imperative to motivate the women during their formative reproductive
years (i.e. less than thirty years of age) for sterilisation -
Counsel them when young. After thirty years though the family
size is completed, decision to undergo sterilisation is not readily
arrived at, and the trend to use IUCD and cannot exercise their
independent contraceptive choices. In the four to five years marital
span group, sterilisation refusal is seen higher in two living
issues than in three living issues which also depicts that the
two family norm has not yet seeped in and there is a want of the
third child. IUCD refusals are also high in the four to five years
marital span group with three living issues |
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and in ?ve to eight years marital span group with two living issues,
though the sterilisation refusals are less in the former than the
later group. It is these groups that need focused attention and
counseling. |
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 |
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Education
wise status and refusals
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There were 74% refusals in the illiterate group vs 26% in the
literate group (Table 3) in our series as compared to the NFS-2
series which were 57% and 43% respectively.1 However the level
of education
studied was only to high school level in the NHFS-2 study. As
the level of education increases, the incidence of refusals decreases.
Education has a vital role to keep contraceptive refusals at bay,
which also supports the Retherford study.2
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Contraceptive
awareness
All the women under study in our series admitted to be aware of the contraceptive
methods available, similar to the NFHS-study 98-99 that showed 98% awareness.3
Of these only 22% had adequate know how of sterilisation and IUCD and
78% had inadequate information. |
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Source
of contraceptive awareness
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Tracing the source of awareness as depicted in Table 4 in our
series, spouse and media have been poor contributors as a source
of contraceptive awareness. Refusals were minimum when the source
was spouse, inlaws and hospital. However refusals were maximum
when the source was media, neighbours and friends. This can be
attributed to the fact that even if the source is neighbours,
family and media, the spouse and inlaws have a major role in decision
making of contraceptive choices and women cannot exercise their
independent choices for family planning method.
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Time
of contraceptive awareness
Fig. 1 shows that the earlier the awareness is obtained in the reproductive
career, i.e. before marriage or the ?rst pregnancy and even before the
current pregnancy and even at the ?rst early antenatal visit, the contraceptive
refusals are low i.e..33.3%, 28.9%, 41.5% and 58.6%. A dip in graph at
44.24% suggests that counseling for more than two occasions in antenatal
visit prepares the women to decide the contraceptive method. Postnatal
counseling have the highest refusals. Postnatal period is one where the
woman has experienced
freshly the child birth process and even though may have decided not to
go through the process again, gives way to family pressures of want of
another child. This revolves around the social culture of the Indian women
who put everybody else before herself even in the contraceptive decisions.
The in?uence of inlaws is so strong that the couple cannot withstand this
in?uence even in the postpartum
period. Hence antenatal counseling must include the spouse and/or inlaws
in tertiary setups and a change in the antenatal setup is mandatory, where
the relatives or spouse accompanying are not kept out of the antenatal
clinic doors. |
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CONCLUSION
1. Refusals are common in twenty to twenty-?ve and more than thirty year
age group. Marital span of > 5 years and illiterate group. Education
plays a key role.
2. Contraceptive adequacy is only 22% and it needs improvisation by use
of scienti?c content as information through media sources like documentaries
shown in TV/Cable/Theatres/ Hoardings at cross roads, bus, railway station,
health articles and talks through newspaper, magazines and radio involving
the corporate sector.
3. Amongst the various sources. Inlaws, spouse and hospital ensure lesser
refusals. Media itself was a poor contributor as a source. Friends and
neighbours are not potential sources as they cannot withstand spouse and
relatives in?uence.
4. Earlier the awareness in the reproductive career lesser are the refusals
hence counsel them when young. Postpartum counseling have maximum refusals
hence counsel early in pregnancy and ensure repeat reminders. |
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We express or gratitude to our Dean Dr ME Yeolekar who has permitted to
publish our hospital data. We thank our Head of the Department Dr Mrs
VR Badhwar who has been the force behind our efforts and all those women
who opened to us freely their minds, constraints and desires, without
which the study would have been incomplete. |
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REFERENCES
1. Socio-Economic differentials in current use of FP Methods: NFHS2 1998-99
National Report India: International institute for Population Sciences:
134-5.
2. Retherford and Ramesh et al 1996, Fertility and contraceptive use in
Tail Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh National FHS Bulletin No. 3,
Mumbai: International institute for population Sciences and Honolulu East-West
Center.
3. Knowledge of FP methods: NFHS 2 1998-99 National report India: International
institute of population sciences: |
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HAEMATOLOGICAL
CHANGES SIGNAL OUTCOME IN SARS PATIENTS
Lymphopenia was present in 98%, neutrophilia in 82%, and thrombocytopenia
in 87%. Also, low CD4 and CD8 cell counts and a high concentration
of lactate dehydrogenase at presentations were associated with
adverse outcome. Depletion of lymphocytes, which was found in
various lymphoid organs at postmortem examination, may be a good
marker of disease activity.
BMJ, 2003; 326 : 1358. |
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