Morning after Pills

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Introduction

Almost half of pregnancies in the world are unintended and Emergency contraception provides women opportunity to avoid pregnancy after unprotected intercourse. Emergency contraception are vital for the larger number of women at risk of pregnancy but do not use regular method and offers reassurance to people using condoms but experience condom slippage or breakage. Significance of morning-after pills has seen Canada allowing it as a nonprescription drug that pharmacists may dispense it directly to women anytime they need it. The Morning – after pills just like a regular birth control pill although it is much stronger and it functions by preventing ovulation thus avoiding contraception or implantation if ovulation occurs. Generally, Morning-after pills prevent an unplanned pregnancy in various situations including; when no contraception was used, missed birth control pills, the condom slipped or broke, the diaphragm dislodged during sexual intercourse, error in the calculation of the fertility period and non-consensual sexual intercourse.

When Can the Morning-after pills used?

Morning-after pills contain hormones similar to the content of regular birth control pills and they prevent pregnancy primarily by preventing ovaries from releasing eggs. Moreover, the pills usually make cervical mucus thick hence prohibiting sperms from mixing with egg and causing fertilization. The functionally of the pills largely depend on the stage of the menstrual cycle in women. Depending on the stage of the menstrual cycle, the contraception may delay or stop the release of the egg, change the lining of the uterus, and finally alter the movement of the egg and sperm by limiting their speed. However, the morning-after pills are never effective for pregnancies implanted in the uterus. It should be noted that morning-after pills are not worth relied on and should only be considered as last chance contraception. Effectiveness of the morning-after pills is within a certain period including immediately after unprotected intercourse up to 5 days or 120 hours. However, they always work best when taken immediately after unprotected sex instead of waiting for the fifth day because the longer an individual waits for the pills, the lesser their chance of working.

Types of Morning-after Pills

There are two hormonal types of morning-after pills whose effectiveness, prices and side effects differ slightly. The first type of morning-after pills is known as plan B that contains progestin hormone and is taken as 2 pills. Plan B pills can either be taken immediately or 1 pill taken right away and the other pill taken in 12 hours although taking two pills instantly is easier and effective. Another type of morning-after pills is Ovral pills that contain two hormones including estrogen and progestin and are served in 4 pills. 2 pills of the Ovral pills are taken immediately while the other two are taken 12 hours later. Significantly, the pills are always most effective if taken within 24 hours of unprotected sex although they can be effective up to 5 days or 120 hours after sexual intercourse. Plan B pills effectiveness in the first 24 hours is considered as 95% of possible pregnancies, between 25 and 48 hours, it prevents 85% of possible pregnancies while between 49 and 120 hours the effectiveness drops gradually to 58% at 72 hours. On the other hand, Ovral prevents about 77% of possible pregnancies in the first 24 hours, 36% of possible pregnancies between 25 and 48 hours and the effectiveness further drops to 31% at 72 hours between 49 and 120 hours.

Where Morning-after pills are foundEmergency contraceptive pills are available in most pharmacies without prescription and sometimes a pharmacist would ask a few questions before giving them out. According to CMAJ (2005), reclassification of morning-after pills as nonprescription drug thus letting pharmacists to dispense it directly to women is good news but making consultation with pharmacists mandatory is unwelcomed. Cases of abortion have risen both in Canada and globally and almost 50% of pregnancies are unintended regardless of the wider availability of contraceptive methods perhaps because of timely access to physicians. In that case, introducing morning-after pills in pharmacies without prescription is a huge step that will avoid the many cases of abortion and unintended pregnancies. It is apparent that the move of allowing morning-after pills in the pharmacies will definitely balance access to the pills for all women across Canada hence a net reduction in abortion.

Improving access to emergency contraception is significant for a comprehensive program that addresses women’s reproductive and sexual health and is important to the health of teenaged girls and young women. Morning-after pills need to be readily available to both rural and urban women and its accessibility must respect women’s right to privacy in addition to seeking to prevent an unintended pregnancy. Access behind the counter may help in reducing unintended pregnancy because the pills are harmless, effective, and easy to use medication that only requires timeliness. Although privacy may be impossible because the drugs are purchased in public places, taking it off the shelf and directly to the checkout offers a higher degree of privacy. Additionally, making morning-after pills available over the counter provides several options of purchasing the drug thus enhancing privacy. This is because a buyer may avoid either friends or people they know working in the nearby pharmacy that may perhaps interfere with their privacy.

It is argued that consultations with the pharmacists may be a good idea because they are qualified individuals whose counseling may be regarded significant when it comes to contraceptive options. Proponents of pharmacist consultation assert that pharmacists usually have frontline contact with their clients and possess the right qualifications required to provide emergency contraception even though they are not taught counseling in universities. On the other hand, according to CMAJ (2005), anti-pharmacists counseling feel that only a few pharmacists may offer the privacy necessary for such kind of consultation and that the consultation fees attached may act as barrier to many women. Moreover, history of self-administered morning-after pills shows high level of appropriate use and therefore competent women who have experienced contraceptive failure or a lapse in caution do not need unwanted questioning or unsought advice. In cases where clients may not be able to purchase the morning-after pills, the pharmacists refer them to the doctors.

How often should Morning-after pills used

Considering the limit on the number of times morning-after pills may be used, Princeton University’s Office of Population Research (2013) explains that there are no safety concerns about using progestin-only emergency pills more than once. It is argued that morning after pills will always prove effective when used in preventing unintended pregnancy after intercourse provided it is used appropriately. However, sexually active individuals should resort to other birth control techniques such as condoms and or pills before or during intercourse instead of continuous use of the morning-after pills. In some instances, the morning after pills may have some unpleasant side effects and should therefore not used repeatedly. Sexually active people need to talk to their health care providers or check out for better birth control technique options for safety and effectiveness of the methods chosen.Morning – after pills tend to help solving the solution of unwanted pregnancies particularly growing teenage pregnancies. However, it is vital to note that the pills do not prevent spread of sexually transmitted infections that have been on the rise especially amongst teenagers. Teenagers and other adults who engage in unsafe sex without considering the issues of unwanted pregnancies sometimes abuse morning – after pills. Unwanted pregnancies and the wider use of