Mass Media And Contraceptive Use Among Mothers In Alulu Nike, Enugu East L.G.A. Enugu State

ABSTRACT

The study was designed to ascertain the role of mass media on the use of contraceptive among mothers in Alulu Nike, Enugu East L.G.A, Enugu state. The statement of problem is poor use of contraceptives by mothers despite awareness creation on contraceptives through various sources such as mass media, health care providers, families, friends and neighbours. Furthermore, most studies in the past were done at national and international levels while little has been done at the community levels. The study was guided by 4 objectives, 4 research questions and 4 hypotheses. The objective of the study was to ascertain the role of mass media on use of contraceptives by mothers in Alulu Nike, Enugu East L.G.A. A cross sectional descriptive design was used for the study. The population of study was 3176 women of child bearing age. A sample size of 355 women of child bearing age were selected using proportionate sampling after the women were stratified according to the six villages that make up the community. Data was collected with the use of questionnaire. Data was analyzed using SPSS 21.0. The results of the study showed that 219(61.9%) respondents reported that the mass media played a role on their acceptance of use of contraceptives. 223(62.8%) respondents reported that the mass media helped them in choosing a type of contraceptive. The results also showed that the 223 respondents currently using contraceptives reported that the mass media played a role on their choice of contraceptive service provider with 187(83.9%) accessing contraceptive services at health facilities while 36(16.1%) are accessing contraceptive services at pharmacy/drug stores. The result also showed that 143(64.1%) respondents reported that their sustained use of contraceptives is as a result of contraceptive messages received from the mass media. There was a significant association between role of mass media and acceptance of use of contraceptives by mothers (X2=338.378, P value