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Abstract
Objectives To revisit women’s knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) regarding emergency contraception (EC) in Hong Kong. The research sought to provide insights for improving the accessibility and quality of EC services.
Study design A cross-sectional study, where self-administered questionnaires were distributed at a major community sexual and reproductive health service in Hong Kong over a 3-month period between July 2023 and October 2023. Descriptive and regression analyses were used.
Results Of 1127 respondents, the majority (n=1057, 93.8%) reported using contraception and 513 (45.6%) had used EC. The main contraceptive methods used were male condoms and oral contraceptive pills. The majority (n=1035, 91.8%) of respondents demonstrated awareness about EC and 938 (83.2%) participants correctly reported the timeframe for oral EC. Around two-thirds reported the internet as being their leading source of EC knowledge. Over 93% of respondents advocated for enhancing public awareness. Acceptance of non-traditional means of obtaining EC, such as over-the-counter provision (51.3%), pharmacy provision (49.8%) and telemedicine consultation (43.1%), were higher than face-to-face EC consultations (32.9%).
Conclusions Family planning service users’ characteristics and KAP regarding EC have significantly changed over the last 20 years. Women now demonstrate greater awareness, knowledge and openness regarding EC, indicating improved readiness for more liberal delivery of EC nowadays. This study highlights the need for restructuring EC service provision in Hong Kong to address women’s changing preferences and contraceptive needs, and to minimise barriers to EC access. We recommend reclassifying emergency contraceptive pills as non-prescription drugs in Hong Kong to align with international practice.
- emergency contraception
- hormonal contraception
- intrauterine devices, copper
- contraceptives, postcoital
- Reproductive Behavior
Data availability statement
Data are available upon reasonable request.
Statistics from Altmetric.com
- emergency contraception
- hormonal contraception
- intrauterine devices, copper
- contraceptives, postcoital
- Reproductive Behavior
Data availability statement
Data are available upon reasonable request.
Footnotes
Contributors YYSC and SFRW conceived the study. All authors contributed to the design of the study. YYSC drafted the manuscript and is the overall guarantor. SFRW, HWRL and SSTL contributed to the statistical analyses as well as the revision and final approval of the manuscript.
Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.
Disclaimer The views expressed in this article are the authors’ personal views and do not represent the official position of their institutions.
Competing interests None declared.
Patient and public involvement Patients and/or the public were not involved in the design, or conduct, or reporting, or dissemination plans of this research.
Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.
Author note Declaration of generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process: During preparation of this manuscript, AI-assisted technologies such as ‘POE’ were used in the writing procress to improve readability. After using this tool, the authors reviewed and edited the content as needed and take full responsibility for the content of the publication.
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