Contraceptive Choices of Women in a Family Planning Clinic of a Tertiary Hospital in Niger Delta, Nigeria

Background: Contraception is critical in preventing unintended pregnancies, lowering maternal and child mortality and improving the lives of women and their families.

Aim and Objective: To determine the pattern of contraceptive usage, uptake rates of the contraceptives, the trend of acceptance, the socio-demographic characteristics and sources of information on contraceptive use at the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital during the study period.

Methods: This was a retrospective study of clients’ records in family planning clinic at the Rivers State University Teaching (RSUTH) over a period of ten years. Their records were retrieved, reviewed; data extracted, coded and analyzed using the statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) IBM version 25.0 (Armonk, NY).

Results: There were 1893 contraceptive acceptors attending family planning clinic between 1st January, 2008 and 31st December, 2017 in the centre. Throughout the study period, there was a downward trend in contraceptive uptake. Over half of the clients (60.7%) were between the ages of 30 and 39, with 6 (0.3%) being under the age of 20. Age range for the study was 19-51years. Majority of the users (66.1%) were multipara while 22 (1.2%) were nullipara. Modal parity was para 3. The women with formal education were 1862 (98.4%). Most of the clients were married 1814 (95.8%) and of Christian religion 1813 (95.7%). Most preferred contraceptive method was the intrauterine contraceptive device (IUCD), 814 (43%). Clinical personnel were the commonest source of information accounting for 1425 (75.3%).

Conclusion: During the study period, there was a downward trend in contraceptive use. The majority of clients were in their thirties, married, well-educated, and multiparous. Most preferred method of contraception was IUCD.