Correlates of Contraceptive Use Among Youths: A Case of Shinyanga Urban District

Novati, Herieth (2017) Correlates of Contraceptive Use Among Youths: A Case of Shinyanga Urban District. Masters thesis, The Open University of Tanzania.

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Abstract

Uptake of contraceptives among youths in Tanzania has been reported to be low due to very limited access and costs associated with. Apart from strategies and plans initiated by the government through the Ministry of Health in encouraging youths and the entire community on use of contraceptives for family planning, very little response has been shown in Shinyanga urban district. The aim of this study was to assess factors that correlated with use of contraceptives among youths in Shinyanga urban district. The study employed a cross–sectional survey design. It consisted of a mix of qualitative and quantitative methods i.e. a community survey, four Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) with 141 active youths and 9 in-depth interviews with health centres workers, urban district leaders and leaders from two NGOs. Quantitative data were analyzed using SPSS while qualitative data analyzed manually using a thematic framework approach. A total of 150 respondents participated in the survey. Female respondents constituted the biggest proportion (57.5%) of the survey respondents. A big proportion (62%) of respondents reported using modern contraception and majority of the users (56%) sought contraceptives from drug shop facilities. Condom was the most used method at 71.7%, followed. Qualitative data showed gaps such as limited contraceptive options, inconsistent supply and, absence of counseling from drug shop operators. Majority of youths used contraceptives and uptake of a given method was mainly influenced by age and marital status. Therefore, to improve contraceptive uptake among young people, age and marital status of targeted youths should be put into consideration and dispensing contraceptives should be accompanied by adequate information to facilitate continuity.

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