Clinics in Mother and Child Health

Abstract

The Effects of Education, Poverty, and Resources on Family Planning in Developing Countries

Sonia Sultan

Introduction: Developing countries are facing many difficulties due to a rise in population. High fertility rates have posed increased health risks for mothers and child's health, resulting in poor quality of life. According to WHO, approximately 225 million women in developing countries want to limit childbearing but are unable to do because of unmet needs, lack of resources, limited access to family planning (FP) services, religious beliefs, and illiteracy. FP can play an imperious role in stabilizing the issues in developing countries.
Purpose: The purpose of this literature review was to explore and synthesize articles on education, poverty, and resources of FP services in low and middle-income countries.
Methodology: A literature review was conducted from the period of Oct to Dec 2016 in PUBMED, CINAHL and Allied Health Literature based on predefined search terms. Eligibility criteria included: original researches, review articles, and perspective, opinion, and commentary articles.
Result: The key findings from literature review suggested that education regarding family planning is essential. Moreover, it is fundamentally important to introduce the concept, knowledge, awareness, practice, and availability of contraceptive measure, and family planning services. However, women in developing countries are struggling for the use of modern contraceptive methods but are lagging far behind due to the scarcity of resources. It is imperative to make contraceptive methods more accessible and available in resource-scarce countries.
Conclusion: FP determinants such as education, poverty, and accessibility to resources can be used to empower women and men in underdeveloped nations. It also helps to change their attitudes and practices towards family planning, thus, leading to better quality of life.