Knowledge and attitude towards vasectomy among married Men in barapwo ward, lira city.

Abstract

Introduction Vasectomy is a permanent contraceptive method available for men with high success rates yet underutilized globally including in Uganda. The utilization of vasectomy in Uganda rarely exceeds 0.1% despite numerous efforts to increase contraceptive uptake. The objective of this study was to determine the knowledge and attitude of married men towards vasectomy in Barapwo Ward, Lira city. Methodology A descriptive cross sectional study was carried out amongst 302 married men selected by simple random sampling. A pretested structured questionnaire was used to assess knowledge and attitudes of respondents. Data was analysed using Stata version 14 software. Results The level of utilization of vasectomy was 0.3% and the proportion of respondents who were willing to undergo vasectomy in future was 19.8%. Majority of the respondents (59.1%) had heard of vasectomy and most of them heard about it from health workers (37.8%). Most of them (69.9%) correctly knew that vasectomy is a permanent family planning method. Majority (41.4%) strongly agreed that men should not involve themselves on family planning while 22.5% agreed with only 8.0% disagreeing. Likewise, majority (50.3%) strongly agreed that permanent sterilization should only be for females while 18.9% were neutral. Further, Respondents who had attained college/university education, whose wives had attained secondary level of education, who were unemployed, who had not heard about vasectomy, who incorrectly answered that vasectomy is effective days later after operation and immediately after were less likely to undergo vasectomy Conclusion In conclusion, Vasectomy is underutilized in Uganda with knowledge gaps and negative attitudes that negatively impact utilization of the method. Recommendation There is urgent need to create awareness about vasectomy to improve on knowledge and subsequently realize attitude change towards vasectomy.