KNOWLEDGE AND PRACTICE OF CONTRACEPTIVES AMONG FEMALE STUDENTS IN DELTA STATE UNIVERSITY, ABRAKA
ABSTRACT
Access to contraceptive has become increasingly crucial for adolescents because many are sexually active at earlier ages than in the past. This will further compound overall levels of maternal mortality in Nigeria tertiary institutions.This research was specifically designed to determine the knowledge and utilization of contraceptives among female students in Delta State University, Abraka. A total of 107 questionnaires were distributed and 97 were retrieved.
majority of respondents were within the age bracket of 20-24 years of 35.1%. 79.4 % of the respondents were single. More than half (95%) of the respondents knew about contraceptives.reason for the lack of detailed knowledge on this subject may be linked to the sources of information; majority of the students got to know about contraception from their friends/peers (39.2%). The study disclosed that there is a high number of females students who practiced sexual intercourse which may result into unintended pregnancy. Also revealed that there is a low trend of use of modern contraceptives for inadequate knowledge.
It is therefore recommended that the use of contraceptives amongst undergraduate female students that are attributed to esteem and habit of students should be reviewed for preferred methods and legally backed practice and use of contraceptives by undergraduates.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
UNAIDS (2007) estimated that 33.2 million women had HIV infection worldwide. In many regions of the world more women than men are at risk of HIV infection with not less 50% of all new daily infections in sub-Saharan Africa being in women. Children account for 12% of all new infections and globally 2.5 million children less than 15years of age were living with HIV in 2007, about 1,200 children under the age of 15years became infected with HIV daily
(UNAID/WHO, 2007), without appropriate care and treatment, more than 50% of newly infected children will die before the second birthday. In 2008, around 430,000 children under 15years become infected with HIV, mainly through mothers –to child transmission (MTCT), infection occurred in Africa where AIDS is beginning to reverse decades of steady progress in child survival. In high income countries MTCT has been virtually eliminated thanks to eective
HIV counseling and testing, access to antiretroviral therapy ART, Safe delivery practices, and the widespread availability and safe use of breast-milk substitutes. If these interventions were used worldwide, they could save the lives of thousands of children each year. Owing to the transmissibility of HIV from mother to child, the feeding of HIV-exposed infants remains a significant challenge in controlling the spread of HIV/AIDS. The dilemma concerning feeding infants of HIV positive mothers is how to balance the risk of HIV transmission through breastfeeding with the risk of death from causes other than HIV such as pneumonia, diarrhoeal diseases and malnutrition among formula-fed infants (WHO, 2010). Exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) plays a critical role in the overall health of infants. It is estimated that 3% of all under-5 mortalities in low-income countries could be prevented through optimal breastfeeding during the crucial first year of life (WHO, 2013). Optimal breastfeeding is considered to be EBF for the first 6 months of life, followed by continued breastfeeding combined with safe and nutritionally adequate complementary feeding up to 24 months of age (WHO, 2009).
