Assessing the Suitability of Unmet Need as a Proxy for Access to Contraception and Desire to Use It.

ABSTRACT: Unmet need for contraception is a widely used but frequently misunderstood indicator. Although calculated from measures of pregnancy intention and current contraceptive use, unmet need is commonly used as a proxy measure for (1) lack of access to contraception and (2) desire to use it. Using data from a survey in Burkina Faso, we examine the extent to which unmet need corresponds with and diverges from these two concepts, calculating sensitivity, specificity, and positive/negative predictive values. Among women assigned conventional unmet need, 67 percent report no desire to use contraception and 61 percent report access to a broad range of affordable contraceptives. Results show unmet need has low sensitivity and specificity in differentiating those who lack access and/or who desire to us

SUBMITTER: Senderowicz L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10257191 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature