Knowledge, practice and barriers in utilization of family planning methods among married couples of urban and rural areas of Sikkim

Abstract

Background: Overpopulation continues to be the main problem around the globe. Family planning also promotes gender equality as well as educational and economic empowerment for women. It is equally important for men to step forward to be at par with women in sharing their family planning responsibility.Objectives: To compare knowledge, practices and analyze what factors may affect the barriers in utilization family planning methods among married couples in rural and urban area of Sikkim.Method: This is descriptive comparative research with sample size of 200 married couples, 100 couples from each urban and rural area, within the age group of 18- 49 years were recruited through stratified random sampling technique from randomly selected urban and rural areas of West Sikkim. Data was collected through structured interview schedule.Result: The married couples in urban residents (92% males, 60% females) had higher scores on family planning knowledge than rural residents (72% males, 52% females). Significant difference was noted between knowledge level of the males of urban and rural area (3.01, P