Knowledge Practice Of Contraceptives Among Female Students
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Knowledge Practice Of Contraceptives Among Female Students
ABSTRACT
Access to contraception has become increasingly important for adolescents, as many are becoming sexually active at younger ages than previously. This may exacerbate the overall levels of maternal mortality in Nigerian tertiary institutions.This study was primarily designed to investigate female students’ awareness and use of contraceptives at Delta State University, Abraka. A total of 107 questionnaires were distributed, with 97 retrieved.
The bulk of responders (35.1%) were between the ages of 20 and 24. 79.4% of respondents were single. More than half (95%) of respondents were familiar with contraception.
The explanation for the lack of specific knowledge on this subject could be related to the sources of information; the majority of students learnt about contraception via friends/peers (39.2%).
The survey found that a large percentage of female students engaged in sexual intercourse, which may result in an unwanted pregnancy. It was also discovered that the use of contemporary contraceptives is declining due to a lack of understanding.
It is so proposed that the use of contraception among undergraduate female students, which is ascribed to student esteem and habit, be examined for preferred techniques and legally supported practice and use of contraception by undergraduates.
Chapter one
INTRODUCTION
UNAIDS (2007) projected that 33.2 million women globally were infected with HIV. In many parts of the world, women are more likely than males to contract HIV
with women accounting for at least half of all new daily infections in Sub-Saharan Africa. Children account for 12% of all new infections, and 2.5 million children under the age of 15 were living with HIV in 2007.
Every day, approximately 1,200 children under the age of 15 are infected with HIV (UNAID/WHO, 2007). Without appropriate care and treatment, more than half of newly infected children die before their second birthday. In 2008, around 430,000 children under the age of 15 became infected with HIV, primarily through mother-to-child transmission (MTCT).
Infection occurred in Africa, where AIDS is beginning to reverse decades of steady progress in child survival. In high-income nations, MTCT has been practically eliminated due to excellent HIV counselling and testing, access to antiretroviral medication (ART), safe delivery practices, and widespread availability and safe use of breast-milk substitutes.
If these therapies were implemented globally, they could save the lives of thousands of children every year. Because HIV can be transmitted from mother to child, feeding HIV-exposed newborns remains a critical issue in preventing the spread of HIV/AIDS.
The challenge in feeding newborns of HIV-positive mothers is balancing the danger of HIV transmission through breastfeeding with the risk of death from non-HIV causes such as pneumonia, diarrhoea, and malnutrition among formula-fed infants (WHO, 2010). Exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) is crucial to newborns’ overall health.
According to WHO (2013), optimal breastfeeding during the crucial first year of life could reduce 3% of all under-5 deaths in low-income countries. EBF is regarded optimal breastfeeding during the first 6 months of life, followed by continuous nursing in conjunction with safe and nutritionally appropriate supplemental eating until 24 months of age (WHO, 2009).
EBF is regarded as a global health objective due to its high relationship with lower morbidity and mortality, particularly in low-income countries where good water and sanitation are frequently unavailable.
The HIV/AIDS epidemic is one of the most significant threats to women’s health, with 20 million women infected and more than 2 million pregnancies happening in HIV seropositive women each year. Thus, HIV infection has become a major issue that complicates pregnancy treatment.
In Africa, HIV prevalence varies greatly, with most Southern African nations having more than one in every five pregnant women infected, and in a few Sub-Saharan countries, median HIV prevalence in prenatal clinics in 2003 topped 10% (McIntyre, 2005).
As of 2005, the prevalence in Nigeria was 4.4%, and by the end of 2006, it was projected that there were 2. 99 million Nigerians living with HIV, with 305, 080 adult new infections and 74, 520 in children, with the majority (up to 90%) acquired by mother-to-child transmission. Breastfeeding accounts for 25–44% of mother-to-child HIV transmission (MTCT) (FMOH, 2007).
Breastfeeding promotion is an important component of global infant health policies due to its evident health advantages. It is commonly used not only in Nigeria, but throughout Africa, because it is socially and culturally acceptable and natural.
However, in the current HIV epidemic, this has become a public health quandary, as MTCT is the primary source of HIV transmission in young children (FMOH, 2007).
There is also the dilemma of infant feeding decisions by HIV sero-positive mothers, because the majority of HIV-1 transmission occurs in the first four months of life, when replacement feeding has the highest risk of increasing infectious disease morbidity and breastfeeding has the greatest benefits.
Decisions about the optimal way to feed infants in impoverished countries can be difficult due to social, economic, and practical constraints. The proportional risks of morbidity and mortality associated with replacement feeding vary depending on a variety of factors, including the environment, the mother’s and her family’s specific circumstances, including education and economic level (WHO, 2004).
The WHO/UNAIDS strategic response to HIV infection in infants was based on four ‘pillars’: primary prevention of infection in women, prevention of transmission from HIV-infected women to their infants, and provision of treatment, care, and support to HIV-infected women and their families (WHO, 2004).
Thus, HIV-infected moms who do not want to risk breastfeeding their kids are more likely to choose formula or other foods as a replacement feeding method. However, WHO advised HIV-infected mothers to cease breastfeeding where alternative feeding is acceptable, feasible, economical, sustainable, and safe (AFASS) (Throne C., Semenenko I., Pilipenko T., Malyuta, 2009).
Most women in Sub-Saharan Africa get their human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) status tested during pregnancy as part of HIV prevention programs. The programme began in Nigeria in 2001 and has subsequently been scaled up in scope and coverage, mostly in secondary and tertiary health facilities.
Despite all of this, participation and enrolment have been quite low. In light of this, an assessment of feeding practices and determinants of feeding practices among HIV sero-positive mothers was carried out in one each of secondary and tertiary health facilities in Abuja, the capital of Nigeria, with the aim of identifying relevant and appropriate interventions for resolving some of the problems faced by these mothers.
PURPOSE/AIMS OF STUDY
The study aims to investigate the knowledge and practice of safe infant feeding among HIV-positive mothers who frequent the postnatal clinic at Central Hospital Sapele in Delta State.
STATEMENT OF PROBLEM The 2010 HIV Sero-prevalence Sentinel Survey was undertaken among women attending prenatal clinics in Nigeria. HIV/AIDS is still increasing among pregnant women, and it remains one of the top causes of morbidity and mortality in Sub-Saharan Africa.
According to study reports by former Minister of Health of Nigeria, Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu, the disease has afflicted all parts of the country to varied degrees of severity. The current national prevalence is 4.1%, and the number of infected people is believed to be at 3.1 million.
This indicates that Nigeria continues to have the second highest number of persons living with HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa, as well as the highest in the West African subregion. As of 2009, there were 1,074 health establishments that provided HIV counselling and testing services.
Currently, there are 875 HIV PMTCT centres and 393 health facilities that provide antiretroviral medications. The issue is, are they being used effectively? Few people visit such centres.
Despite the government’s efforts to raise HIV/AIDS awareness and offer facilities, the majority of HIV positive pregnant women are still hesitant to enrol in HIV preventive programs.
To provide better services, program planners might benefit from understanding the attitudes of women towards child feeding. The difficulties listed above are identical to those discovered by the researcher in Sapele. As a result, this study looked into the knowledge and practice of infant feeding among HIV-positive women who attended a postnatal clinic.
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