The role of contraceptive use dynamics in shaping the contraceptive
prevalence structure and ht determining its impact on fertility becomes
increasingly important for family planning program, policy mailers and
program managers. Relatively few analyses of contraceptive use dynamics
exist for developing countries. The lack of _ such studies is that the data
required are not often collected. This article is intended to _,fill in the gaps by
analyzing the five-year calendar data derived from the I994 Indonesia
Demographic and Health Survey (1994 DHS). The five year calendar data on
contraceptive use, pregnancy, termination and reason for discontinuation of
contraceptive use analyzed using the life table methodologies provide
meaningful insight on the quality of contraceptive use in Indonesia. It is found
that the median duration of use is longest for the IUD and implant, while
shortest lor condom/intravag. About 27 percent of all Indonesia contraceptive
users discontinue the use of their chosen method within a year. The reasons
for discontinuation vary across subgroups of women. Method failure is
associated more with discontinuation of traditional method, while method-
related reasons such as health concern or inconvenience of use are more
likely to be associated with discontinuation of modern method mainly lUDs,
injectables and implants. There are more important factors that differentiate
women on discontinuation qt' contraception e.g., area of residence, region
education, age, and contraceptive intent. These findings on discontinuation
enabled the family planning program to provide more realistic and focused
services to their clients. In conclusion, this analysis emphasizes the
importance of examining the quality of contraceptive use in Indonesia to
achieve greater appreciation of the factors that affect contraceptive
discontinuation, switching behavior, and use:;i:i'lure. Special attention should
he addressed to health concerns as an important issue for the most popular
modern methods and to the minority of women who discontinue use within a
year and do not switch to another method.
