WABA Regional Snap Shot

Family planning Enforced with Liberation of The Pill
By James Achanyi-Fontem
The contraceptive pill will be available from chemists without a prescription in Britain from this year 2009. This was disclosed by the Department of Health last December 9. In effect, women will be able to have a private consultation with a pharmacist before obtaining the contraceptive free.
Through the new rule, pharmacists could eventually be granted the right to give the Pill to girls under 16 without their parents’ consent. On the announcement of the decision, family planners have warned there is no evidence that makingn the Pill available from chemists would cut unplanned pregnancies, and said it could lead to more sexually transmitted infections.
Two primary care trusts in London will act as pilot sites to see if the scheme is suitable for all. Four million women in England are using the Pill already, but this was available only with a prescription. It believed that if the pilots are successful, it could be put on the same footing as the Morning-After Pill, which is already available at pharmacies without a doctor’s signature.
Though the department of health says, it is all about improving access to contraceptive services, the director of Family and Youth Concern, Norman Wells thinks, this is just promoting a casual approach to sex.
Dr. Wells adds, that this will result in more underage sex, more teenage pregnancies, more abortions and more sexually transmitted infections. On the other hand, sexual health charities have welcomed the move, saying women wanted to get their contraception at a time and place convenient to them and without delay.
The pilot primary care trusts engaged are Lewisham and Southwark. It has been observed that Britain has the highest teenage birth rate in Western Europe. In England, 7.462 girls under 16 fell pregnant in 2005 compared to 39.683 under 18s in the same year.
The Pill issue is not unconnected to the snap shot on 14-year-old girls who are forced to have sex in the UK. According to statistics from the Department for Children, Schools and Families, one out of four girls are hit by boyfriends. The same report reveals that a quarter of 14-year-old girls have been forced to engage in sexual practices according to new research.
The girls’ boyfriends do not only hit them, but hurt them and humiliate the girls in front of others. An online survey by teen magazine Bliss found that half those questioned had had their mobiles or emails checked, or been told not to go somewhere.
The Chief Executive of women’s Aid, Nicola Harwin regretted the fact that 25 per cent of 14- year-olds have been forced or coerced into sex and that the girls admitted it. She added, that there was a lack of awareness about the issue because there was a “notion” that possession and jealousy were “romantic”.
Ms. Harwin said, “You don’t know if you’re the only person it’s happening to or whether it’s what relationships are about. British Home Office reported in June 2008, that domestic violence among teenagers was significant. The Department for children, Schools and Families intends to introduce compulsory lessons in relationships in British secondary schools as a solution.