Determinants of Contraceptive use among men in Urban Slums of Aligarh

Introduction: Aligarh is a city with 48% of population residing in urban slums. Baseline in Aligarh city estimated the Contraceptive Prevalence Rate at 37% with 15% unmet need for limiting. The literacy rate of Aligarh city was recorded at 63.9% during 2001 census. Objective: To identify the factors associated with use of contraception amongst men living in the urban slums of Aligarh. Method: Baseline survey was conducted for Urban Health Initiative in slums of Aligarh and 3000 married women of reproductive age were interviewed. Among surveyed slums, four slums and 1873 MWRA were selected for final analysis based on pre set criteria. Eligibility was based on marital status. Chi Square test was done to examine the patterns of association between the determinants and the contraceptive use. Results: Contraceptive use among all users is 85% and 45% for age group 35-44 and 18-24 years respectively. 80% of those educated to class 12 or more are using contraceptives and it is only 62.3% among men educated to class 5 or less among all users. The contraceptive usage among people using contraceptive from lowest wealth quintile is 63.9 % while from the highest quintile it is 78 %. Chi Square test shows significant relationship between age, education, wealth, caste/tribe, number of live births and contraceptive use. Conclusion: Men of reproductive age should be the focuses of interventions aimed at improving the benefits of contraceptive methods. Improving the educational and economic status of men will likely improve the level of use of contraceptives.