Providers' knowledge of, attitude to and practice of emergency contraception

Abstract

One-hundred and fifty-two of the providers stated that they had heard of EC. The correct timing and dose interval of EC were known by 50% of them. The participants held the belief that EC caused abortion (39.4%), and that it was harmful for the fetus (31.1%). Other prejudices were the possibility of increased unprotected sexual intercourse (78.9%) and a tendency for men to give up condom use (75%); female providers were more prejudiced concerning these statements. The providers' tendency towards the provision of counseling was significantly related to their prejudices (p = 0.011, p = 0.033) and to the application rate (p = 0.000). Conclusion Providers need more detailed information about EC. During FP training courses, the providers should be encouraged towards counseling EC which would increase the application rate of the users and decrease their own prejudices.

Emergency Contraception Provision: A Survey of Michigan Physicians from Five Medical Specialties

“…Rather, some respondents worried that use of ECP may discourage regular contraceptive use (17%) or encourage promiscuity (6%). Other studies have found similar concerns among physicians, 7,18,38 although such concerns may be unfounded. 39 It has been shown that compared to clinic access, increased access to ECP via direct pharmacy access or advance provision helps increase ECP use among those in need and allows patients to use it in a more timely manner without changing women's patterns of contraceptive use or sexual risk behaviors.…”

“…7,18,28,[35][36][37][38] Few concerns about the safety and efficacy of taking ECP were raised by physicians. Rather, some respondents worried that use of ECP may discourage regular contraceptive use (17%) or encourage promiscuity (6%).…”

“…31 The reasons for personal opposition to ECP use were not directly queried in our survey, but other studies have shown a correlation between such opposition and the belief that ECP acts as an abortifacient. 7,18,43 However, research shows that ECP does not interfere with an established pregnancy 2 and is unlikely to affect an egg once it has been fertilized even if taken before implantation. 44 These concerns about interference with regular contraceptive use and as a cause of promiscuity and abortion are likely important reasons for some physicians' opposition to the OTC status of ECP as well.…”

“…Most prior research on this issue has focused on a single specialty, such as emergency medicine [18][19][20] or obstetrics/gynecology, 21 even though women routinely access healthcare from physicians in a wide variety of specialties. 22 This study was conceptualized and conducted prior to the recent FDA approval of nonprescription use of Plan B ® and presented a unique opportunity to examine physicians' attitudes and practices about ECP immediately before the change in dispensing method.…”

Spanish women's attitudes towards post-fertilization effects of birth control methods

“…Although some women consider a method as "abortive" or "abortifacient" if it has an anti-implantation effect [18,28,35], we preferred to use the term "postfertilization" when referring to this mechanism of action. Moreover, although postimplantation effects are considered as abortion in scientific forums [26,[36][37][38], we also avoided the term "abortifacient" to use less value-laden wordings throughout our study.…”