Family planning and reproductive health: Preventing unplanned pregnancies

Abstract

Family planning and reproductive health are essential to ensure women's autonomy over their reproductive choices and reduce the incidence of unplanned pregnancies. In Brazil, public policies seek to expand access to contraceptive methods and sex education. However, challenges such as socioeconomic barriers, lack of information and difficulties in accessing health services compromise the effectiveness of these actions. This study aims to analyze the impact of family planning policies on preventing unplanned pregnancies and increasing adherence to contraceptive methods among women of reproductive age. This is an integrative review with qualitative analysis. The search was carried out in the Scientific Electronic Library Online (SciELO), Virtual Health Library (VHL) and PubMed databases, using Health Sciences Descriptors (DeCS) combined with Boolean operators, resulting in the collection of 68 studies from the databases used. The results indicated that, despite the existence of public policies aimed at family planning, limitations on access to information and structural challenges still hinder the reduction of unplanned pregnancies and abortions. It is concluded that more comprehensive strategies are needed, going beyond the simple distribution of contraceptives, including the training of health professionals and the expansion of the dissemination of accessible and continuous information.