Determinant of unsafe abortion among teenagers within the ages of 19 years at Nsapor,Berekum

Abstract

The study investigated the determinants of unsafe abortions among teenagers (13-19 years) atNsapor, Berekum. A descriptive cross-sectional study design was used. The samplepopulation was obtained using a judgmental/purposive sampling technique. A total of 50teenagers were sampled for the study. The data for the study was collected by use ofstructured and semi structured questionnaires. The study found that the all (100%) therespondents indicated that they had ever heard of abortion before. Majority (62%) had theirsource of information from friends followed by health care provider (28%) and mass media(10%). Almost all (96%) the respondents indicated that avoidance of parental/guardian disappointment influences the practice of unsafe abortion. Majority of the respondents alsoindicated that desire to pursue education (90%), stigma of unplanned pregnancy (86%) anddesire to bear children only after marriage (80%) are factors that influences the practice ofunsafe abortion. All (100%) the respondents mentioned that unsafe abortion can result inexcessive bleeding, Majority of the respondents indicated that unsafe abortion can also leadto infertility (98%), abdominal pain (94%) and death (86%). The study recommended that the Ministry of Health should carry out effective adolescent’s reproductive and sexual healthinterventions. The mass media should create awareness on youth-friendly services which will increase its utilization by adolescents and go a long way in preventing unsafe abortion. The study concluded that respondents had good knowledge regarding unsafe abortion. Majority heard of abortion form their friends. Misoprostol/Cytotec was the most commonly known abortifacient among respondents.