Emergency contraception: awareness, attitudes and barriers of Saudi Arabian Women

Objectives: To assess knowledge, attitude, and barriers about emergency contraception [EC] among married women of child bearing age

Methods: A quantitative cross-sectional study was conducted over a 6-month period, commencing in March 2013 at Family Practice Clinics of King Khalid University Hospital [KKUH], Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Data was collected using a structured pretested questionnaire and analyzed using SPSS version 21.0 statistical software

Result: A total of 242 women were enrolled in the study. Only 6.2% [15/242] had some knowledge of EC and of these only two had ever used it. Health care professionals were the least reported source of EC information [6.6%, n=1]. Majority [73.3%] had negative attitude toward EC being available over-the-counter without a prescription. The most common barriers to using EC were concerns about possible health effects. Only two women [13.3%] considered religious belief as a major hindrance to its use

Conclusion: Awareness of emergency contraception is very low among women of Saudi Arabia. Health care professionals were the least reported source of information, which is a cause for concern. Our findings reveal an urgent need to educate women about EC, keeping in view the social norms and the Islamic values

Prevalence and pattern of alternative medicine use: the results of a household survey

Alternative medicine [AM] encompasses all forms of therapies that fall outside the mainstream of medical practice. Its popularity is on the increase. Because previous surveys were limited and not generalizable, we estimated the prevalence, pattern and factors associated with use of AM in the community. A multistage cluster cross-sectional household survey was conducted among Saudi residents of the Riyadh region. Data were collected in 2003 by trained interviewers from primary health care centers using a specially designed questionnaire. Of 1408 individuals participating in the study, 39% were men. The mean [ +/- SD] age for the study population was 35.5 [ +/- 13.9] years. Sixty-eight percent of the respondents had used AM during the last 12 months. The Holy Quran as a therapy was the most frequently used AM [50.3%], followed by honey [40.1%], black seed [39.2%] and myrrh [35.4%]. The health belief model was found to be the most important determinant of AM use. Factors independently associated with AM use included perceived failure of medical treatment, the perceived success of AM, a preference for natural materials, and long appointment intervals to see physicians. There is a high prevalence of AM use in the Riyadh region and the most important determinant of AM use was the perceived failure of medical treatment. The study results call for intensive health education campaigns in the media addressing wrong beliefs regarding AM and modern medicine. The popularity of AM in this community should alert decision makers to look at the difficult accessibility to the health system