Prevalence and Factors Associated With Consistent Contraceptive Use among Female Sex Workers in the Greater Banjul Area, The Gambia.

Consistent contraceptive use (CCU) is an important public health intervention for the prevention and spread of STIs, as well as unintended pregnancies and abortions, especially among female sex workers (FSWs). This study determines the prevalence and identifies factors influencing CCU among FSWs in The Gambia. Utilizing a cross-sectional study design with a snowball sampling technique, respondents were recruited from various locations within the Greater Banjul Area. Data was collected using a structured questionnaire with the Research Electronic Data Capture application. Descriptive and logistic regression analyses were used to determine the prevalence and examine factors associated with CCU among FSWs. In total 429 respondents were recruited. More than 23% of FSWs reported CCU with majority being male condoms (95.3%), followed by oral contraceptive pills (56.9%), and Intra-Uterine Contraceptive Devices (54%). Results of the multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that having a boyfriend (aOR = 12.44, 95%CI: 4.30 ~ 35.94), obtaining contraceptives from Worldview International Foundation (aOR = 6.34, 95%CI: 2.21 ~ 18.14) and local pharmacy (aOR = 4.83, 95%CI: 1.75 ~ 13.32), ever used OCP (aOR = 5.82, 95%CI: 2.91 ~ 11.67), ever used natural methods (aOR = 2.26, 95%CI: 1.06 ~ 4.84), negative attitude of boyfriend toward contraceptives (aOR = 0.06, 95%CI: 0.03 ~ 0.13), and having a negative HIV test result (aOR = 0.14, 95%CI: 0.02 ~ 0.80) were significantly associated with CCU among FSWs. The study revealed a low prevalence of CCU among female sex workers in GBA. Associated factors with CCU identified in this study as well as increasing access to and education on the importance of contraceptive use should be considered when planning targeted interventions for increase in CCU uptake.