Factors associated with induced abortion among women in Hohoe, Ghana

ABSTRACT

In Hohoe, Ghana, induced abortion is the second highest cause of hospital admissions. We aimed to describe factors influencing induced abortion among 408 randomly selected women aged 15-49 years. 21% of the women had had an abortion; of those, 36% said they did not want to disrupt their education or employment; 66% of the abortions were performed by doctors. Bivariate logistic regression showed that compared with women with secondary education, women with basic education (OR = 0.31, 95% CI 0.18- 0.54) and uneducated women (OR = 0.24, 95% CI 0.07-0.70) were significantly less likely to have had an abortion. Women who were married (OR = 1.83, 95% CI 1.10-3.04), peri-urban residents (OR = 1.88, 95% CI 0.95-3.94), and women with formal employment (OR = 2.22, 95% CI 0.86-5.45) were more likely to have had an abortion. Stakeholders should improve access to effective contraception to lower the chance of needing an abortion and target education programmes at those with unmet need for contraception (Afr J Reprod Health 2010; 14[4] 115-121)