Awareness of Contraceptive Methods and Barriers to Practice among Female Students at the University of Buea, Cameroon

Abstract

Introduction
Globally, there is an increase in sexual activity among young people aged
15-24 years. Contraceptive use among women of reproductive age in
Cameroon is relatively low.
Objective
This study determined the awareness, use and barriers to contraceptive
practice among female students at the University of Buea, Cameroon.
Methods
A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 305 females
selected using multi stage stratified sampling. Data were collected using a semi-structured
questionnaire and analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi square test, and logistic regression.
Results
Among the recruited participants, 96.1% were aware of the existence of contraceptive with condoms
(92.5%) and pills (86.9%) being the most commonly mentioned during survey. The prevalence of
contraceptive uptake was 58.3% with a significant association between awareness and uptake among
participants (p=0.006). Barriers affecting contraceptive uptake among participants included; lack of
knowledge (48.5%), fear of side effects (44.6%), and partner disapproval (39.0%) financial constraints
(29.5%) and embarrassment to buy contraceptive methods in open pharmacies. Respondents who
reported barriers had about 49% lesser chance of likely using contraceptive [OR=0.511, 95% CI: 0.264,
0.989].
Conclusion
The female students of the University of Buea are much aware of contraceptive methods with an
outstanding prevalence. It was also noted that irrespective of the student’s awareness on
contraceptive methods, some barriers exist towards the use of contraceptives among the female
student in the University of Buea. There is also a need for the creation of a youth-friendly club to meet
the sexual and reproductive health needs of the University population.