FACTORS INFLUENCING CONTRACEPTIVE UPTAKE AMONG LACTATING

MOTHERS (6-24 MONTHS). A CASE STUDY OF 2MEDICAL RECEPTION STATION

(2MRS)
 CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background of the study

The use of contraceptive to delay conception after a recent birth is said to be the best practice

for lactating mothers. This is so because short-inter pregnancy intervals can lead to negative

complications such as maternal anaemia, low birth weight and neonatal/infant mortality

(Cleland, Conde-Agudelo, Peterson, Ross, Tsui, 2012).

According to report by Reeves (2011), contraceptive use is known to be safe and effective even

during early stages after delivery, but its use in Kenya remains as low as 1.3% and its use by

lactating mothers is almost negligible. Pandey (2011) also states that the acceptance of

contraceptives within a society, class and religious group varies. Ndugwa, Cleland, Madise,

Fotso, Zulu (2011) revealed that after delivery a lactating mother confronts a lot of challenges

because of breastfeeding, childcare, menstrual resumption, and resumption of sexual

relations. The uptake of contraceptive among lactating mothers remains abysmally low in sub-

Saharan Africa and little knowledge is known about how pregnant women arrive at their decision

to adopt its use (Eliason, Baiden, Quansah-Asare, Graham-Hayfron, Bonsu, Phillips, 2013).

Asamoah (2015) revealed that the use of contraceptives improves the status of women, reduces

pregnancy-related complication that leads to prevention of loss of human resources and revenue

to the country.

The changes after delivery poses difficulty situations for most women, such as care for a newly

born child or children as well as coping with cultural, emotional and physical change, various
studies have also revealed that women especially suffer from postpartum stress and depression

(Eliason, Baiden, Quansah-Asare, Graham-Hayfron, Bonsu, Phillips and Awusabo-Asare, 2013).

According to Depineres, Blumenthal and Diener-West (2005) during this period woman

especially women who just had their first delivery are presented with a rising risk of unwanted

conception and often frustrated desire for contraceptive protection. The study therefore seeks to

explore the factors that influence contraceptive uptake among lactating mothers.

Problem Statement

According to Rao and Mathada (2015) many of the nursing mothers who prefer to delay next

pregnancy are unaware of family planning practices.

Even though the delay conception after a recent birth is known to be the best practice for

lactating mothers short inter pregnancy outcome it can lead to negative complications such as

maternal anaemia, low birth weight and neonatal/infant mortality (Cleland, Conde-Agudelo,

Peterson, Ross, Tsui, 2012), personal observation shows that traditional beliefs, religious

barriers, misconceptions and the lack of male involvement have weakened the influence of

contraceptive use which is known to assist in birth spacing. The study therefore seeks to explore

the factors of contraceptive uptake among lactating mothers.

General Objective

The main objective of the study is to examine the factors influencing contraceptive uptake

among lactating mothers in 2MRS.

Specific Objective

The following specific objectives will be used to address the main objectives of the study.
 i. To assess the prevalence of contraceptive use among lactating mothers at the 2MRS.

ii. To identify who influence the type of family planning methods at the 2MRS.

iii. To identify limitations to the use of contraceptives among lactating mothers at the

2MRS.

Research questions

i. What are prevalence of usage of contraceptives among lactating mothers at the

2MRS?

ii. Who influences the type of family planning method at the 2MRS?

iii. What are the limitations to the use of contraceptives among lactating mothers at the

2MRS?

Significance of the study

The study aims to explore the factors of contraceptive uptake among lactating mothers. The

results of the study are expected to be beneficial to nurses and health professional in general on

how to educate lactating women on the uptake of contraceptives. The results of the study will

also be beneficial to health institutions in Ghana and Africa as a whole on the factors influencing

contraceptives uptake among lactating mothers. Moreover, the study will serve as a source of

reference for students and researchers who wish to conduct further studies on this topic.

Organization of the rest of the study

The study is structured under five chapters. Chapter two presents a review of literature in relation

to the topic, chapter three also presents the various methods adopted to help achieve the objective
of the study. Chapter four presents the result as well as a discussion of the findings made by the

study. Finally, chapter five presents a summary of the study, conclusion and recommendation

drawn based on the findings of the study.

Reference:

Eliason S, Baiden F, Quansah-Asare G, Graham-Hayfron Y, Bonsu D, Phillips J, (2013). Factors

influencing the intention of women in rural Ghana to adopt postpartum family

planning. Reproduction Health.10:34.

Cleland J, Conde-Agudelo A, Peterson H, Ross J, Tsui AO, (2012). Family planning

contraception and Health. Lancet.380:14956.

Reeves M. (2011). Scaling up prevention of Mother to Child Transmission of HIV, A report of

the CSIS Global Health Police Centre, Washinton DC.

http://csis.org/publication/scaling-prevention-mother-child-transmission-hiv

Pandey SM. (2011) Correlates of modern contraception practices among married couples in rural

area of Hisar (Haryana). Indian Journal on Preventive & Social Medicine.

42(3):274- 77.

Ndugwa RP, Cleland J, Madise NJ, Fotso J-C, Zulu EM. (2011) Menstrual pattern, sexual

behaviors, and contraceptive use among postpartum women in Nairobi urban

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Asamoah N (2015) Determinants of postpartum family planning uptake among women in the Kumasi

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Eliason S, Baiden F, Quansah-Asare G, Graham-Hayfron Y, Bonsu D, Phillips J and Awusabo-

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Depineres, T., Blumenthal, P.D and Diener-West, M. (2005). Postpartum contraception: The

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Rao, B.S & Mathada V.D (2015). Awareness and determinants of contraceptive use among

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