Determinants of abortion decisions among Ghanaian university students

Appiah-Agyekum, Nana Nimo; Sorkpor, Constance; Ofori‐Mensah, Samuel

doi:10.1515/ijamh-2014-0011

Cited by 17 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 11 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Even though there may be similarities in abortion decisions and experiences among the youth in general, this study supports Appiah-Agyekum et al 21 that some striking differences exist in outcomes between youths of varying literacy and educational levels. Consequently, experiences of students on abortions in terms of their decisions, choice of method, and level of knowledge on abortions differ in illiterate and uneducated youths.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 83%

“…In general, there has been a gradual shift from surgical abortions to pharmaceutical abortifacients 38 attributable to advances in technology, market shifts, and related increased levels of access to pharmaceutical abortifacients. 39 , 40 This seems to be the case in Ghana where findings from earlier studies by Appiah-Agyekum et al 21 confirm that pharmaceutical abortifacients are the most preferred abortion methods among university students. This may however not be the case for all categories of the population as surgical abortions have been identified as the preferred abortion method for working women and married women in Ghana.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 78%

“…Yet, relatively little evidence exists on the experiences, choices, methods, and availability of pharmaceutical substances used for self-induced abortions among young females. While a significant number of existing studies have focused on students’ knowledge, perceptions, and awareness on abortion in general 20 and other forms of unsafe abortion methods, 19 Appiah-Agyekum et al 21 suggest the urgent need to delve into the experiences and practices of use/abuse of pharmaceutical substances among students. Thus, this study aimed to highlight the abortion experiences of university students with particular reference to pharmaceutical drugs.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Medical abortions among university students in Ghana: implications for reproductive health education and management

Appiah-Agyekum¹

2018

IJWH

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

PurposeIn Ghana, unsafe abortion is a major cause of maternal mortality. Even though pharmaceutical drugs seem to be a key means of unsafe abortion, a paucity of evidence exists on the issue among adolescents, students, and other groups at risk. This study therefore explores the abortion experiences of Ghanaian university students with particular reference to pharmaceutical drugs to fill the knowledge gap and enrich the evidence base for reproductive health education, policies, and interventions on abortions among students.Patients and methodsUndergraduate students from the University of Ghana were randomly selected and interviewed. The interviews was recorded, transcribed, and analyzed thematically using the framework analysis.ResultsStudents were aware of safe medical abortion services but were reluctant to use them because of cost, stigma, and proximity. Generally, medical abortions were more likely to be self-induced among students with misoprostol-based drugs administered orally or vaginally. However, students also used various over-the-counter drugs, contraceptives, and prescription drugs singly, in series, or in combinations to induce abortion. Yet students had relatively little knowledge on the inherent risks and long-term implications of unsafe medical abortions and were more likely to have repeat abortions through unsafe medical methods.ConclusionStudents’ knowledge and awareness of safe medical abortion avenues have not influenced their propensity to use them because of stigma, cost, and other factors. Rather, several methods of unsafe medical abortions are used increasingly with dire long-term effects on students. Serious knowledge gaps exist among students on the methods and risks of medical abortion. Consequently, there is an urgent need to revise current abortion management approaches and redirect attention toward reducing stigma and financial and social costs of safe abortion services, and increasing the proactive engagement, counseling, and management of medical abortions among students.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 83%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 78%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Medical abortions among university students in Ghana: implications for reproductive health education and management

Appiah-Agyekum¹

2018

IJWH

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The prevalence of pregnancy termination is higher in women of older age [ 8 , 15 , 16 ]; young age of sexual debut [ 17 ]; employed women [ 13 ], unintended pregnancy [ 8 , 16 ], forced or transactional sex [ 18 ], physical or sexual intimate partner violence [ 19 , 20 ], higher number of living children [ 18 , 21 ], and higher wealth index [ 13 , 22 ]. Being married [ 8 , 13 , 22 , 23 ], having a secondary education [ 15 , 22 , 24 ], modern contraceptive use [ 23 ] and residing in rural areas have been associated with lower prevalence of induced abortion [ 13 , 15 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Trends in and predictors of pregnancy termination among 15–24 year-old women in Nigeria: a multi-level analysis of demographic and health surveys 2003–2018

Onukwugha

Magadi

Sarki³

et al. 2020

BMC Pregnancy Childbirth

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Three-quarters of pregnancy terminations in Africa are carried out in unsafe conditions. Unsafe abortion is the leading cause of maternal mortality among 15–24 year-old women in Sub-Saharan Africa. Greater understanding of the wider determinants of pregnancy termination in 15–24 year-olds could inform the design and development of interventions to mitigate the harm. Previous research has described the trends in and factors associated with termination of pregnancy for women of reproductive age in Nigeria. However, the wider determinants of pregnancy termination have not been ascertained, and data for all women have been aggregated which may obscure differences by age groups. Therefore, we examined the trends in and individual and contextual-level predictors of pregnancy termination among 15–24 year-old women in Nigeria. Methods We analysed data from the 2003, 2008, 2013 and 2018 Nigerian Demographic and Health Surveys (NDHS) comprising 45,793 women aged 15–24 years. Trends in pregnancy termination across the four survey datasets were examined using bivariate analysis. Individual and contextual predictors of pregnancy termination were analysed using a three-level binary logistic regression analysis and are reported as adjusted odds ratios (aOR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results Trends in pregnancy termination declined from 5.8% in 2003 to 4.2% in 2013 then reversed to 4.9% in 2018. The declining trend was greater for 15–24 year-old women with higher socioeconomic status. Around 17% of the total variation in pregnancy termination was attributable to community factors, and 7% to state-level factors. Of all contextual variables considered, only contraceptive prevalence (proxy for reproductive health service access by young women) at community level was significant. Living in communities with higher contraceptive prevalence increased odds of termination compared with communities with lower contraceptive prevalence (aOR = 4.2; 95% CI 2.7–6.6). At the individual-level, sexual activity before age 15 increased odds of termination (aOR = 2.3; 95% CI 1.9–2.8) compared with women who initiated sexual activity at age 18 years or older, and married women had increased odds compared with never married women (aOR = 3.0; 95% CI 2.5–3.7). Conclusion Our findings highlight the importance of disaggregating data for women across the reproductive lifecourse, and indicates where tailored interventions could be targeted to address factors associated with pregnancy termination among young women in Nigeria.

show abstract

“…The prevalence of pregnancy termination is higher in women of older age [8,[15][16]; young age of sexual debut [17]; employed women [13], unintended pregnancy [8,16], forced or transactional sex [18], physical or sexual intimate partner violence [19,20], higher number of living children [18,21], and higher wealth index [13,22]. Being married [8,13,[22][23], having a secondary education [15,22,24], modern contraceptive use [23] and residing in rural areas have been associated with lower prevalence of induced abortion [13,15].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Trends in and predictors of pregnancy termination among 15-24 yer old women in Nigeria: a multi-level analysis of Demographic and Health Surveys 2003-2018

Onukwugha

Magdi

Sarki³

et al. 2020

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: Three-quarters of pregnancy terminations in Africa are carried out in unsafe conditions. Unsafe abortion is the leading cause of maternal mortality among 15-24 year-old women in Sub-Saharan Africa. Greater understanding of the wider determinants of pregnancy termination in 15-24 year-olds could inform the design and development of interventions to mitigate the harm. Previous research has described the trends in and factors associated with termination of pregnancy for women of reproductive age in Nigeria. However, the wider determinants of pregnancy termination have not been ascertained, and data for all women have been aggregated which may obscure differences by age groups. Therefore, we examined the trends in and individual and contextual-level predictors of pregnancy termination among 15-24 year-old women in Nigeria. Methods: We analysed data from the 2003, 2008, 2013 and 2018 Nigerian Demographic and Health Surveys (NDHS) comprising 45,793 women aged 15-24 years. Trends in pregnancy termination across the four survey datasets were examined using bivariate analysis. Individual and contextual predictors of pregnancy termination were analysed using a three-level binary logistic regression analysis and are reported as adjusted odds ratios (aOR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results: Trends in pregnancy termination declined from 5.8% in 2003 to 4.2% in 2013 then reversed to 4.9% in 2018. The declining trend was greater for 15-24 year-old women with higher socioeconomic status. Around 17% of the total variation in pregnancy termination was attributable to community factors, and 7% to state-level factors. Of all contextual variables considered, only contraceptive prevalence (proxy for reproductive health service access by young women) at community level was significant. Living in communities with higher contraceptive prevalence increased odds of termination compared with communities with lower contraceptive prevalence (aOR=4.2; 95% CI 2.7-6.6). At the individual-level, sexual activity before age 15 increased odds of termination (aOR=2.3; 95% CI 1.9-2.8) compared with women who initiated sexual activity at age 18 years or older, and married women had increased odds compared with never married women (aOR=3.0; 95% CI 2.5-3.7).Conclusion: Our findings highlight the importance of disaggregating data for women across the reproductive lifecourse, and indicates where tailored interventions could be targeted to address factors associated with pregnancy termination among young women in Nigeria.

show abstract

Determinants of abortion decisions among Ghanaian university students

Cited by 17 publications

References 11 publications

Medical abortions among university students in Ghana: implications for reproductive health education and management

Medical abortions among university students in Ghana: implications for reproductive health education and management

Trends in and predictors of pregnancy termination among 15–24 year-old women in Nigeria: a multi-level analysis of demographic and health surveys 2003–2018

Trends in and predictors of pregnancy termination among 15-24 yer old women in Nigeria: a multi-level analysis of Demographic and Health Surveys 2003-2018

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About