The results of this study make it evident that the status of contraceptive use among women in Ashmoun is affected by several factors at the individual, familial and institutional levels. At the individual level, the present. In Egypt, few studies have been conducted to investigate the relationship between women’s attitudes and social norms towards using of contraception [11].

This study also found that other aspects of an individual’s beliefs were significantly associated with the current use of contraceptives. These include women perceptions of potential side effects associated with modern methods and approval of contraceptive use for birth spacing. Not surprisingly, women who had concerns about contraceptive side effects were less likely to be current users. Many researchers have reported that women’s worries about the side effects of contraceptive methods may constrain their use of contraception. For example, a study by [12] demonstrated that one of the main reasons for contraceptive nonuse in southern Nigeria was women’s fears of side effects.

According to the 2008 Egyptian DHS, the users of contraceptive methods stopped using contraception for several reasons, including health concerns, desire for another child, contraceptive failure, and dissatisfaction with the method [13]. Elsewhere, similar findings were also reported [14,15].

Moreover, this study revealed that women’s approval of contraceptive use for birth spacing was one of the significant factors that influenced the current use of contraception. This finding agrees with the results of a study by [11], where a woman’s approval of birth spacing was also found to be a significant factor associated with the use of contraceptives among Egyptian women in the southern region. Similar findings were also reported in the literature [16-18].

In a study by [19], the use of contraceptives among Saudi women was reported to be mainly for birth spacing rather than a desire to limit family size. In Turkey, a woman’s approval of contraception was also observed as an influential variable in increasing the use of different methods versus nonuse [20]. The main reason for disapproval of contraceptive use among Turkish women was the lack of information about FP programs. In Egypt, the results of the 2008 DHS have illustrated that opposition to contraceptive use for birth spacing, either by women or their husbands, was reported to be limited [13].

At the institutional level, this study revealed that women who received FP counseling from healthcare providers at the MCH centers were more likely to be current users of contraception. In fact, the provision of contraception information by healthcare professionals has been supported as an effective way to enhance the use of contraceptive methods among women of childbearing age. Research has shown that providing women with accurate information about contraception and improving their access to necessary health education are fundamental to helping women making fertility decisions [21].

Moreover, authors reported that the lack of appropriate knowledge about contraceptive methods is an underlying factor for women’s anxiety about using contraception [22]. In Thailand, for example, [15] reported that one of the main barriers that impeded women’s use of contraceptives was lack of information about contraception. In Saudi Arabia, a study by [23] has illustrated that health workers played a limited role in providing married women with information about contraception. In Pakistan, a study by [24] also demonstrated that receiving messages from healthcare providers was strongly associated with women’s use of contraception. The study revealed that users of contraceptives were 3.8 times more likely to report having heard about FP from a healthcare provider compared with nonusers [24].   In the literature, repeated structured counseling by healthcare professionals is suggested as an effective approach to improving contraceptive acceptability and continuation [25-39].