Abstract:
Objective: To assess the factors associated with knowledge, attitude
and behavior of contraception use among urban slum population in
Chennai.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in the urban slum
of Anakaputhur, Chennai. Married couples between ages of 19-49
years and living in slum areas were taken up for the study by simple
random sampling. Pregnant women, postnatal and postmenopausal
women were excluded from the study. Data collection was done
using a pretested structured questionnaire focusing on details
regarding contraception knowledge, attitude, and practices. Data
analysis was done using IBM SPSS version 22. Analytical test like
Chi square and odds ratio (OR) were used to identify association
between knowledge, attitude, and behavior of contraception with the
associated variables and enter method of logistic regression analysis
was done.
Results: Out of the 360 respondents, 228 were females, with a mean
age of (34±5) years. Approximately 43% demonstrated adequate
knowledge of contraception use, and 91% were aware of at least one
contraceptive method. Notably, 72% exhibited a positive attitude
towards contraceptive use. Nevertheless, 43% (155 individuals) did
not utilize any contraceptive method. Among contraceptive users,
intrauterine devices were the most commonly adopted, followed
by barrier methods and female sterilization. There was significant
association between knowledge of contraception and education (aOR
7.29, 95% CI 2.93-18.10, P<0.05), age (aOR 2.04, 95% CI 1.19-
3.50, P<0.05) and socioeconomic class (aOR 3.66, 95% CI 1.71-7.85,
P<0.05; aOR 3.97, 95% CI 2.12-7.49, P<0.05). Regarding attitude
towards contraception use, education (aOR 8.54, 95% CI 2.35-31.03,
P<0.05), sex (aOR 0.15, 95% CI 0.06-0.37, P<0.05), age (aOR 0.53,
95% CI 0.28-0.99, P<0.05), socio-economic class (aOR 4.42, 95%
CI 1.97-9.92, P<0.05; aOR 9.83, 95% CI 3.63-26.58, P<0.05) and
number of children (aOR 10.04, 95% CI 4.26-23.66, P<0.05) were
the variables that had a significant association.
Conclusions: These findings underscore the imperative for enhanced
dissemination of health education pertaining to contraception use
within the slum population. The health sectors of the area and other
stakeholders need to make sure to extend penetration of family
planning related services to the urban slum population.