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WOMEN'S KNOWLEDGE OF ABORTION LAW AND AVAILABILITY OF SERVICES IN NEPAL

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 August 2013

SHYAM THAPA ,
SHARAD K. SHARMA  and
NARESH KHATIWADA
SHYAM THAPA*
Affiliation:
Nepal Public Health Foundation, Kathmandu, Nepal
SHARAD K. SHARMA
Affiliation:
Ipas/Nepal, Kathmandu, Nepal
NARESH KHATIWADA
Affiliation:
Ministry of Health and Population, Kathmandu, Nepal
*
1Corresponding author. Email: [email protected]
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Summary

This paper assesses women's awareness of the liberalization of abortion law and their knowledge of a place for obtaining abortion services in Nepal. The data are from the 2011 Nepal Demographic and Health Survey. The results are compared with data from a similar survey conducted in 2006. Variations in the two measures among several population sub-groups are analysed by performing logistic regression. Among women aged 15–44, 38.7% (CI: 37.8, 39.6) were aware of the legal status of abortion and 59.8% (CI: 58.9, 60.7) knew of a place to have an abortion. The percentages of both measures varied considerably by various population sub-groups. Over a 5-year period, knowledge of the legality of abortion increased by 6.4 percentage points, and awareness of service delivery sites increased by 3.3 percentage points. The increases in both measures were, however, largely limited to higher wealth quintiles and those with higher educational attainment. The results suggest the need to intensify efforts to educate women in Nepal, particularly the most disadvantaged women, about abortion law, including the conditions under which abortion is permitted, and where to access safe abortion services.

Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Biosocial Science , Volume 46 , Issue 2 , March 2014 , pp. 266 - 277
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2013 

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