O-091 From Family Planning to Fertility Planning - ‘FertPlan’ awareness amongst contraceptive healthcare providers and users
Authors: Moody J , Bambaranda I , Perkins M , Lennox K , Choudhary M 
Published: June 2022

Study question

Are women and healthcare professionals seeking or providing contraception aware of age-related decline in female fertility and information support regarding fertility awareness?

Summary answer

89.9% of contraceptive users and 71% of providers stated lack of awareness regarding age and fertility emphasising website as the preferred information resource.

What is known already

The last 50 years has seen an upward trend in the age at which women are giving birth. The birth rate for women aged 35 to 39 has trebled since 1980 and is now at its highest ever level. Delaying childbearing may mean that some women will inevitably leave it too late and become childless involuntarily. Women are also seeking fertility treatment at older ages, however, success rates decrease dramatically with age. It is not clear whether women who delay their fertility are aware of the decline in fertility with age, and whether healthcare professionals discuss fertility planning with women.

Study design, size, duration

We conducted two independent anonymous questionnaire surveys of reproductive age women seeking contraception and healthcare professionals(HCP) providing contraception in the UK following research ethics approval, to determine their awareness of the age-related decline in fertility, information resource and potential barriers to provision of information. . This was a prospective study design conducted over a year period using an online questionnaire. A total of 249 participants completed the survey.

Participants/materials, setting, methods

138 reproductive age women on contraception consented and participated in the study by completing the online questionnaire. Of these, 96.4% were of white origin,1.4% mixed ethnicity, 1.4% Asian origin and 0.7% Black.

111 HCP providing contraceptive advice in family planning clinics or in General practice completed the survey. Of these, 6 were allied healthcare professionals ie specialist nurses. Data was collated and analysed using percentages and descriptive statistics.

Main results and the role of chance

Of the total 138 female contraceptive users, 87 were aged 30-39 years whilst 35 were 40-45 years. 51.4% of women indicated no concern about their future fertility, whilst the remainder gave roughly uniformly distributed ratings of concern from unconcerned to highly concerned. However, one third of all women (31.1%) believed that age-related fertility decline occurred after 40 years. 89.9% of women felt fertility awareness and education is important.

Of the total 111 HCP, ∼one in 10 HCP (11.7%) misconstrued the female age-related decline to begin from 40 years onwards. The contraceptive providers also were misinformed regarding age related decline in IVF success rate with 45% of them citing 40 years or over to be the age that contributed to decline in IVF success. Despite these figures, majority (71.2%) of HCP agreed there was lack of fertility awareness and 33.3% felt fertility education should be commenced as early as school age. 27% HCP always discussed future fertility whilst 33.3% discussed most of the times. The most commonly-stated barriers to providing information were lack of time, self-perceived lack of knowledge, and women not asking.

73.2% of reproductive age contraceptive users and 85.6% HCPs expressed website to be the most preferred option for information resource.

Limitations, reasons for caution

To the best of our knowledge, this is one of the first studies seeking fertility awareness amongst those practising family planning. As this was not a qualitative interview based study, the findings are open to interpretation and one must exercise caution.

Wider implications of the findings

This study highlights clear need for fertility education and awareness amongst contraceptive providers and users. By providing resources to inform, we may increase awareness and confidence amongst both groups thereby empowering women to make informed choices about their future fertility by integrating Fertility planning within Family Planning.

Trial registration number

Not applicable (IRAS 248991 and R&D Ref 8999)