Uptake of family planning services among an ethnically mixed population in a general practice setting
Garg, M.
British Journal of Family Planning 24(2): 82-83
1998
ISSN/ISBN: 0144-8625 PMID: 9741984 Document Number: 276619
Family planning services in the UK are provided by both specialized family planning clinics and general practitioners, providing family planning clients with a choice of where to seek services. The author assessed the uptake of family planning services in an urban general practice with a mixed ethnic population to identify areas in which the degree of uptake could be improved. The practice served a total of 562 female patients aged 16-45 between August 1995 and July 1996. About 20% of these women had consulted the practice about contraception within the previous year and 4% were pregnant. However, the remaining 425 female patients had not consulted the practice about their contraceptive needs. 194 of these latter women were asked about their contraceptive status when they visited the practice for other reasons during August-October 1996; 33 could have benefitted from a consultation with their general practitioner about contraception. For example, 22 patients were sexually active and did not want to become pregnant, but they were not using contraception, while the remaining 11 patients had not returned to have their IUDs checked. Of the 194 patients surveyed, 108, were Asian, 51 European, and 35 of other ethnic background. The Asian women showed a greater preference for condom use than did non-Asian women.