Contraceptive use among women with disability in Kenya

Abstract

Women with disability need the same options as other women to choose to conceive or to control their fertility. Several studies have found disparities in contraceptive use among all women and women with disability. According to the 2008-09 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey (KDHS, 2008), slightly less than half (46%) of currently married women are using some method of contraception. On the other hand, according to the Kenya National Survey for Persons with Disabilities (KNSPWD, 2008) report, only 15.6 percent of married women with disability use any type offamily planning. This study explored factors influencing contraceptive use among women aged 12-49 years with a disability in Kenya. Specifically, it looked at demographic, socio-economic and other intervening factors influencing contraceptive use among this group of women. It utilised data from the 2008 KNSPWD. The survey covered a total of 14,569 households in which 3,095 individuals with disability were interviewed, and 6,943 women aged 12-49 were interviewed on reproductive health issues. The population studied was 281 women aged 12-49 years with disability in Kenya. A total of6,638 women aged 12-49 years without disability were also used in the study for comparative analysis during bivariate analysis among the different variables. Descriptive analysis and cross tabulations were used to describe as well as test for associations between the dependent variable and independent variables respectively. Multiple logistic regression was done using stepwise statistical method for the purpose of identifying the , . ' .' most significant factors influencing contraceptive use among women with disability. The study confirmed observations from other studies that show that married women living in regions with high contraceptive prevalence are more likely to use contraceptives. The study also confirmed that women without disability are more likely to use contraceptives than women with disability. However, the study revealed some conflicting results whereby women with disability who resided in rural areas and those with lower level of education were more likely to use contraceptives ae-eernpared to women with disability who resided in urban areas and iv I j those with higher level of education. The study also found that having access to information and family planning services does not influence contraceptive use among women with and without disability. From the findings, further research is recommended on factors that would make women with disability who have no education or lower level of education and residing in rural areas to have a higher rate of contraceptive use than those with higher level of education and residing in urban areas. The study recommends further research on access to reproductive health information for women with disability as well as on their sexuality. Through national policies, there is need to stress for availability of programs and materials to inform women about how disability can affect their reproductive health, and how they can work with health care providers to ensure that they are receiving the same quality of service as all women. Programs on reproductive health need to ensure that disability issues are mainstreamed so that women with disability can benefit from them the same way as women without disability do.