Publications

The research aimed to assess the factors influencing the utilization of contraceptives among females of reproductiveage seeking health services at Jinja Regional Referral Hospital. Specifically, it sought to establish socio-demographiccharacteristics, examine health service factors affecting contraceptive utilization, and determine its prevalence. Across-sectional and descriptive research design employing both quantitative and qualitative methodologies wasutilized to ensure the gathered information was representative of the population and captured at a single point intime. The study discovered a prevalence of contraceptive use among females of 55.7%, with short-term hormonalmethods being the most common at 57.1%. Key findings revealed that females aged 18 to 30 years (57.1%) weresignificantly more likely to use contraception (p-value = 0.036), and multiparous individuals (98.2%) were moreinclined to utilize contraception compared to para-one individuals (50.6%) (p-value = 0.024). Moreover, priorcounseling (73.2%) significantly promoted contraceptive usage (p-value = 0.015). In conclusion, despite the observedprevalence, contraceptive utilization remained relatively low. Recommendations include increasing the availabilityof contraceptive services at lower-level health care centers to enhance accessibility, educating mothers visitinghealth facilities about contraceptive services, and addressing contraception-related phobias through counseling toencourage uptake among females.Keywords: Contraceptives, Females, Reproductive age, Health services, Health facility.