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Knowledge and attitude of schoolgirls about illegal abortions in Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo
Abstract
Objectives: To determine the knowledge of schoolgirls in Goma, DRC about the health consequences of illegal abortions and to assess their attitude towards these abortions.
Method: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among a randomly selected sample of 328 high school girls aged 16 to 20 years. A pre-tested, self-administered questionnaire was used for data collection. Nine out of 55 (11 public and 44 private) secondary schools were randomly selected for inclusion in the study. The Epi-Info 2000 computer program was used for data capturing and analysis.
Results: The different sources of information were the radio (66.2%, 217), friends (31.7%, 104), parents (1.5%, 5), and the church (0.5%, 2). The health consequences of illegal abortion mentioned were death, infertility, infection and bleeding. Of the participants, 9.8% (32) had committed an abortion before and 46% (151) knew where to obtain it; 76.2% (250) of participants were against illegal abortion, while 23.8% (78) supported it.
Conclusion: Girls in secondary school in Goma had good knowledge of the illegal abortion practice and its consequences. A fifth of them were in support of the procedure. The DRC government may need to consider legalising abortion to secure a healthy future for affected girls.
How to cite this article: Paluku LJ, Mabuza LH, Maduna PMH, Ndimande JV. Knowledge and attitude of schoolgirls about illegal abortions in Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo. Afr J Prm Health Care Fam Med. 2010;2(1), Art. #78, 5 pages. DOI: 10.4102/phcfm.v2i1.78
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