Trends and determinants of contraceptive discontinuation and switching in Egypt and Jordan

Mohamed M. Ali, World Health Organization (WHO)
John G. Cleland, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM)

A small literature on contraceptive use dynamics in developing countries exists but, to our knowledge, no analysis of trends has been published. Using data from 4 Egypt DHS and 3 from Jordan, the paper will estimate the overall and method specific continuation rates over time and by key socio-economic characteristics. Switching will be examined in terms of the probability of resumption of use within three months of discontinuing an earlier method because of dissatisfaction. There are 59,105 episodes reported, IUD and Pill are the main method used. Traditional methods are mainly used in Jordan. The 12-month discontinuation rates for all reason in Egypt range from 37 to 43 per 100 episodes and from 49 to 57 in Jordan. Dissatisfaction with the method was the main reason for discontinuing the pill and IUD and failure for traditional methods. The findings will be used to develop recommendation to improve quality of care.