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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Ann Natl Acad Med Sci 2022; 58(01): 027-037
DOI: 10.1055/s-0041-1740924
Original Article

Opinions, Attitudes, and Prescribing Practices of Oral Contraceptive Pills of General Practitioners and Gynecologists in India

Sandeep Kumar
1   Department of Surgery, King George's Medical University, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India
2   All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India
,
Varsha Dwivedi
3   Department of Surgery, King George's Medical College, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India
,
Yashodhara Pradeep
4   Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, King George's Medical University, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India
,
Abhijeet Pakhare
5   Department of Community Medicine, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India
,
Girdhar Gopal Agrawal
6   Department of Statistics, Lucknow University, Uttar Pradesh, India
,
Anil Kumar Saksena
7   Department of Pharmacology, King George's Medical University, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India
,
Vishwajeet Kumar
8   Community Empowerment Lab, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India
› Author Affiliations Funding The above work was supported by an ad hoc research scheme funded by the Indian Council of Medical Research—ICMR, New Delhi (Ref No.: 5 / 10 / 12 / 2009-RHN). The work of S.K. was funded as a research project by the ICMR.
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Abstract

Background To study the prescription behavior of oral contraceptive pills (OCPs) by physicians, gynecologists, and alternative medicine practitioners (AMPs).

Materials and Methods Close-ended questionnaire-based cross-section study was performed between 1st September 2012 and 28th February 2014 in three groups of responders, i.e., AMP, general medical practitioners (GMPs), and obstetricians and gynecologists (ObGy). A stratified random cluster sample was used. Data of 400 subjects in all three groups were obtained using both univariate and multi-variate sophisticated statistical analyses for analyzing attitude and practices and were recorded on an ordinal scale using appropriate non-parametric test.

Results Of the 1,237 subjects surveyed, 400 completed questionnaires were received from each of the three groups viz; AMPs, GMPs, and ObGy. Remaining 37 incomplete questionnaires were not included in the final analysis.

Conclusion There are equal misconceptions regarding OCPs among users and prescribing physicians. Preference for OCPs in married and unmarried women is also equally low. OCP usage and their prescription practices can be improved by removing potential barriers, developing public–private partnership, and training promoters.

Keywords

oral contraceptive pills - birth rates prescribing behavior - general practitioners - gynecologists

Compliance with Ethical Standards

The study was conducted as part of the Indian Council of Medical Research project, and complete adherence to prescribed ethical standards was followed including institutional ethical clearance and informed consent of all participants.


Author Contributions

S.K. conceived the study, wrote the research proposal, and was the principal investigator. V.D. with the help of all other authors designed and tested the questionnaire, conducted the survey, and computed the data. Y.P. provided the technical and clinical inputs. G.G. and A.P. did the statistical analyses. A.P. facilitated and provided inputs in content validity and logistics of data collection.




Publication History

Article published online:
30 December 2021

© 2021. National Academy of Medical Sciences (India). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

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