A survey on the knowledge, attitude and acceptance of male sterilzation among men in Ogbomoso, South West Nigeria

Abstract

Background: Traditionally, majority of the family planning services and campaigns focus on women without much consideration given to their male partners. In our society, there is bias, myth and misconception about vasectomy, this has resulted in a significant reduction in the willingness of men to seek vasectomy as a means of family planning. This study aims to identify the level of awareness and acceptance of male sterilization among men in Ogbomoso, south west Nigeria. Methods: This study was a cross sectional survey carried out among men in Ogbomoso, participation was voluntary and three hundred men had the questionnaires complete and suitable for analysis. Result: This study revealed a high level of awareness of family planning methods among men in Ogbomoso. However, less than half of these men agreed that men should be involved in family planning despite a higher number of the respondents being aware of vasectomy as a means of contraception. The common reasons for not accepting of vasectomy varied from preference for other methods of contraception, cultural taboos, religious sentiments, similarity to castration , fear for surgery and surgical complications. Conclusion: Renewed effort has to be made which will be aimed at improving the level of information about vasectomy in the public domain especially by the media and health care workers. This effort should also be targeted at religious organizations, clerics and traditional institutions this is because most of these misconceptions have deep rooted religious and cultural sentiments. This can also be achieved by ensuring synergy between government, non governmental organizations,advocacy groups,traditional and religious rulers. Keywords: knowledge, attitude, acceptance, vasectomy, male sterilization