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The Contraception-Adoption Process in Jordan

Contraceptive use is a dynamic process, involving the decision to adopt contraception (or not to), the selection of a contraceptive method, and, over time, the decision to continue to use a method, switch to another method, or discontinue using contraception. This study examines some of the elements of that process, including the people women talk with about using contraception and choosing a method, why they switch methods or stop using contraception, and how satisfied they are with their contraceptive method and with the health care providers who are the sources of their contraceptives. The study found that the majority of women who use traditional methods of contraception do not come from dissatisfied former users of modern methods. Almost all women who discontinue use of one method of contraception readopt another, despite their dissatisfaction with the first method. Oral contraceptives are not badly regarded by women and their advisors, though they are, however, frequently abandoned. Husbands are influential in decisions to begin and discontinue using contraception, but have less to say about the choice of contraceptive method. General practitioners (GPs) specializing in women's health are the pivotal actors in advising women, while pharmacists apparently play no significant role in the decision to adopt a contraceptive method or continue to use it. This makes the work of CMS/Jordan more challenging, as pharmacists in Jordan have been very responsive to family planning information, while physicians are much more difficult to reach.