Halo 194 (Jan 2020)
Personal experience and how informed adolescents are regarding contraception
Abstract
Introduction Contraception is the most favourable method of family planning. Prevention of unwanted pregnancy has great significance, both as a measure of health preservation and as a wider preventive and social measure. Objective to evaluate how informed the adolescents are when it comes to contraception, as well as to evaluate their personal experiences. Methods the research was conducted in the form of a cross-sectional study. The research instrument was a questionnaire the adolescents were asked to fill, which contained questions constructed to assess how well they were informed about the importance of contraception as well as their personal experiences. The study included 120 students and the sample was intentional, as the study was conducted at the Faculty of Health and Business Studies in Valjevo, Singidunum University in April-May 2019. The participation in the study was voluntary and anonymous, and the research was approved by the authorities of the institution. Results the results were analysed using descriptive statistical methods. The respondents were between 19 and 23 years of age and predominantly female (83%), while only 17% were male. The majority of the respondents were well informed on the subject of mechanical contraception methods and the use of condoms. The condom was the most commonly used method of contraception during sexual intercourse (63%). A large number of respondents (40%) believed that adolescents could do with more information on the subject. Conclusion the research results indicate that there is a need for more education on the subject of the importance and methods of contraception. It is necessary to intensify health education in cooperation with health institutions, schools, higher education institutions and the entire community. This need is felt by the adolescents themselves, who believe that their peers do not know enough about contraception.
