Is LARC for Everyone? A Qualitative Study of Sociocultural Perceptions of Family Planning and Contraception Among Refuge
- PDF / 383,022 Bytes
- 7 Pages / 595.276 x 790.866 pts Page_size
- 63 Downloads / 152 Views
Is LARC for Everyone? A Qualitative Study of Sociocultural Perceptions of Family Planning and Contraception Among Refugees in Ethiopia Autumn S. Davidson1 • Camille Fabiyi1 • Shiferaw Demissie2 • Hiwot Getachew2 Melissa L. Gilliam1
•
Springer Science+Business Media New York 2016
Abstract Objective Ethiopia is home to an increasingly large refugee population. Reproductive health care is a critical issue for these groups because refugee women are at high risk for unmet family planning needs. Efforts to expand contraceptive use, particularly long acting reversible contraceptive (LARC) methods are currently underway in several Ethiopian refugee camps. Despite availability of LARC methods, few refugee women opt to use them. The purpose of this study was to explore how culture influences contraceptive attitudes and behaviors, particularly towards LARC methods, among Ethiopia’s refugee populations. Methods Focus group discussions and individual interviews were conducted with Eritrean and Somali refugees living in Ethiopia. The qualitative data was analyzed to identify important themes highlighting the relationship between cultural values and contraceptive attitudes and behaviors. Results Childbearing was highly valued among participants in both study groups. Eritreans reported desire to limit family size and attributed this to constraints related to refugee status. Somalis used cultural and religious faith to deal with economic scarcity and were less likely to feel the need to adapt contraceptive behaviors to reduce family size. Participants held overall positive views of the contraceptive implant. Attitudes toward the intrauterine device (IUD) were overwhelmingly negative due to its long-acting nature. Conclusions Culture, religion
& Autumn S. Davidson [email protected] 1
The Section of Family Planning and Contraceptive Research, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
2
Ethiopia Program, International Rescue Committee, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
and refugee status form a complex interplay with family planning attitudes and behaviors among Eritrean and Somali refugees. For these populations, the three-year implant appears to be a more acceptable contraceptive method than the longer-acting IUD because it is in line with their reproductive plans. Keywords Refugee Sub-Saharan Africa Family planning Contraception behavior Intrauterine device Contraceptive implant
Significance Forced migration of populations across borders has reached record numbers in the last year. An estimated 15 million refugees are currently living in Africa. Family planning is a critical issue for refugee women because of economic instability and physical vulnerability. Ethiopia hosts a large refugee population in need of basic health care including family planning. Little is known about the contraceptive needs of this refugee population. This study explores cultural influences on family planning attitudes and behaviors among a population of refugees in Ethiopia and provides guidance for c
Data Loading...
