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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Toni L. Felice, PhD1, Kay Armstrong, MS2, Patricia I. Documét, MD, DrPH1, Paul G Whittaker, PhD3, and Janet Adams, PhD1. (1) Applied Research Department, Family Health Council, Inc., 960 Penn Avenue, Suite 600, Pittsburgh, PA 15222, (412) 288-2130, tfelice@fhcinc.org, (2) Consultant, Drexel Hill, Philadelphia, PA 19102-5076, (3) Family Planning Council of Pennsylvania, 260 S. Broad St., Suite 1000, Philadelphia, PA 19102
Wide-spread use of emergency contraception (EC) could prevent 1.5 million unintended pregnancies and 700,000 abortions each year in the U.S. Yet, there continues to be opposition to EC use and accessibility. Much of this opposition centers on the assertion that EC may promote irresponsible sexual behavior. Data from our ongoing NICHD-funded, multi-site study on EC use address this issue. In this five-year, longitudinal study, we will be examining relationships between EC use and participants’ demographics, access, behaviors and psychosocial factors as well as their fertility and contraceptive histories. We report findings from the baseline interviews of 520 women who are clients in multiple family planning clinics in Southeastern and Western Pennsylvania. We present data on: EC familiarity and knowledge; previous EC use and the occurrence of unprotected sex in the previous 30 days; the association between past EC use and contraceptive use in the previous 12 months; and the sexual behavior, contraceptive use and EC use data that are collected on a monthly basis through pager-initiated surveys. Preliminary findings indicate those who have used EC in the past were no more likely than those who had never used EC to engage in unprotected sex in either the previous 30 days or 12 months, c2=.83, p=.362; c2=.43, p=.509, respectively. There is, however, a significant relationship between EC use and contraceptive type used, c2=11.07, p=.05. Implications of these and other findings are discussed.
Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant will be able to
Keywords: Contraception, Sexual Behavior
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.