Position Paper on Emergency Contraception Research

Position on Emergency Contraception - Research Paper Example Emergency contraceptive pills should be taken immediately after unprotected sexual intercourse or within a time period of 72 hours. These pills contain both estrogen and progestin. The minipills are birth control pills that only constitute of progestin (Trussell et al 1997). â€Å"When started within 72 hours after unprotected intercourse, a combination of ethinyl estradiol and levonorgestrel is at least 75% effective against pregnancy.† (Glasier 1997 p.1058). Emergency contraception methods should be made available to women of all ages as it is an effective method of preventing unintended pregnancy. Especially availability of emergency contraception to young women of child-bearing ages is important in controlling pregnancy after unprotected sex. The consequences of unintended pregnancy are quite serious and are a cause of over-bearing burdens on the women and their surrounding families. This necessitates the importance and significance of emergency contraception in prevention of unwanted pregnancy. However, it is also crucial that enough information regarding its adverse effects, mode of action, uses and primary purposes should be provided to the general public. Between 1996 and 2002 the percentage of women who had awareness about emergency contraception and the percentage of women who had ever used emergency contraception increased. ... It has been observed that awareness about the emergency contraception is very inadequate amongst the women and such short-comings should be overcome by the health providing centers and professionals. Not only should emergency contraception remain available to women of all childbearing ages, information should be made available to the public to educate all women about the use, purpose, potential side effects and the availability of emergency contraception. View 1: Pro Emergency Contraception Young women should be educated on all of their options when it comes to contraception. They should be aware of emergency contraception methods and complete knowledge about these methods should be made available to them. In certain situations such as rape or birth control failure, knowledge about emergency contraception becomes particularly important in preventing unwanted or unplanned pregnancies. It has been observed through national surveys and health care surveys that public knowledge about eme rgency contraception is quite limited. A random survey of 1000 American women and 1002 men who were 18 years and above was conducted in 1994. It was estimated that Americans were not well informed about the emergency contraception methods. Only 1% had actually used the emergency contraceptive pills and 55% had heard of the pills. It was concluded that the aspects of availability and uses of emergency contraceptive pills should be made clear to the public and enhanced knowledge should be provided. Health care providers could play an important role as the general public relies on them for health information and awareness (Delbanco, Mauldon & Smith 1997). Unintended pregnancies can occur due to several causes and