Legalisation of Abortion in a Poor-Resource Setting: Nigerian Undergraduates' Perspectives

Nigerian Postgraduate Medical Journal

article

Funmito Omolola Fehintola¹  Idowu Ajibola²  Samuel Anu Olowookere¹  Yemisi Roseline Akande³  Tolulope Komolafe¹  Emmanuel Eledah¹  Eniola Faneye¹  SeunOyewale¹ 

[1] Department of Community Health, College of Health Sciences, Obafemi Awolowo University;Department of Community Medicine, Bowen University Teaching Hospital;Department of Community Medicine, Ladoke Akintola University

关键词: Abortion;    attitude;    knowledge;    legalisation;    undergraduates;   

DOI  :  10.4103/npmj.npmj_254_22

学科分类：地球科学(综合)

来源: Medknow

【 摘 要 】

Background: Abortion is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality amongst Nigerian women in a country with restrictive abortion laws. Despite being illegal, abortions are still performed, and about 50% of abortions are performed by untrained persons in unhygienic conditions. This study assessed the determinants of attitude of undergraduates to legalisation of safe abortion in Nigeria. Methods: It is a descriptive cross-sectional study. We used a three-stage sampling technique to select 423 undergraduates using a pre-tested questionnaire. The predictors of attitude towards abortion and its legalisation were identified during multivariate analysis. Results: Good knowledge of abortion and its sequelae was found in about two-thirds (62.2%) of the participants, while over half (56.3%) had a negative perspective to abortion legalisation in Nigeria. Older participants were more likely to have positive perspectives to legalisation of abortion compared to their younger counterparts (odds ratio [OR] = 4.72, confidence interval [CI]: 2.61–8.55). Furthermore, respondents from upper social class and those with good knowledge were more likely to have positive perspectives to legalisation of abortion compared to their counterparts (OR = 5.63, CI: 3.12–10.16 and OR = 4.50, CI: 2.89–7.01). Conclusion: The study showed that respondents' knowledge of abortion was relatively low amongst the study population, and more than half of the respondents did not want abortion to be legalised. Increasing awareness on the importance of abortion and its complications in Nigeria will curb the menace of death due to abortion now and in the future.

【 授权许可】

CC BY-NC-SA