{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,29]],"date-time":"2026-10-29T02:32:45Z","timestamp":1793241165763,"version":"4.5.0"},"reference-count":35,"publisher":"SAGE Publications","issue":"4","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,10]],"date-time":"2026-08-10T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1786320000000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/page\/policies\/text-and-data-mining-license"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["journals.sagepub.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Can J Nurs Res"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,12]]},"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Background<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Unsafe abortion remains a critical public health challenge among young women in Ghana, persisting despite the provisions of PNDC Law 102 permitting abortion.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Aim<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>This study examined the determinants of unsafe abortion among women aged 15\u201325 years in the Bongo District, Upper East Region, with particular focus on contraceptive use, health-system accessibility, and socio-economic pressures.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Using a qualitative study, thirty-four women from five communities were recruited through purposive sampling and interviewed using a semi-structured guide.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Four main themes emerged firstly, the idea of having an unsafe abortion was so ingrained in the society that it had become a kind of a routine for people in the district; Secondly, not using contraceptives was more a result of the women's worries about becoming infertile, side effects, and their partners disapproval than simply not knowing about them; Thirdly, formal health services were so expensive, far, and the providers were so judgmental that many just gave up on them; Lastly, social stigma namely, the women's fear of disgracing their families and being expelled from school. The findings are that unsafe abortion in Bongo District is a systemic failure, not a lack of awareness.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>The findings of this study highlighted that unsafe abortion in Bongo District is a structural failure of the reproductive health system, of social support networks, and of policy implementation rather than a deficit of individual knowledge or moral resolve. Young women in the district are neither uninformed about the risks of unsafe procedures nor indifferent to their health.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1177\/08445621261477146","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,10]],"date-time":"2026-08-10T11:53:51Z","timestamp":1786362831000},"page":"678-689","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1177\/sage-journals-update-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Determinants of Unsafe Abortion Practices Among Young Women in the Bongo District, Ghana"],"prefix":"10.1177","volume":"58","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6574-2695","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Joel Afram","family":"Saah","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Regentropfen University College"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Richard Opoku","family":"Asare","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"CARE Centre for Internationally Educated Nurses, Toronto, Canada"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"179","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,10]]},"reference":[{"key":"e_1_3_3_2_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0248478"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_3_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1186\/s40834-021-00165-6"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_4_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1186\/s12978-021-01078-y"},{"issue":"4","key":"e_1_3_3_5_1","first-page":"234","article-title":"Determinants of abortion decisions among Ghanaian university students","volume":"6","author":"Appiah-Agyekum N.","year":"2015","unstructured":"Appiah-Agyekum N., Sossah-Baya C., Nyante F. (2015). Determinants of abortion decisions among Ghanaian university students. Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, 6(4), 234\u2013242. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1515\/ijamh-2014-0011","journal-title":"Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_6_1","unstructured":"Awudu S. Onuora-Oguno A. Garza R. I. (2021). A conflict of interest: A socio-legal analysis of the barriers to accessing comprehensive abortion care in Ghana [Master\u2019s thesis Erasmus University Rotterdam]. Erasmus University Thesis Repository."},{"key":"e_1_3_3_7_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1136\/bmjgh-2021-007151"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_8_1","unstructured":"Beauchamp L\u00c8 (2025). Abortion governance in legal permissive frameworks: The promise of abortion decriminalization [Doctoral dissertation]. McGill University."},{"issue":"2","key":"e_1_3_3_9_1","first-page":"1","article-title":"Is there a relationship between repeat induced abortion and current use of contraception among women in the reproductive age? A study in Ghana","volume":"2","author":"Boah M.","year":"2019","unstructured":"Boah M., Adampah T., Achinkok D. (2019). Is there a relationship between repeat induced abortion and current use of contraception among women in the reproductive age? A study in Ghana. Asian Journal of Pregnancy and Childbirth, 2(2), 1\u201311. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.9734\/ajpcb\/2019\/v2i114","journal-title":"Asian Journal of Pregnancy and Childbirth"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_10_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1007\/s00148-022-00902-4"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_11_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3389\/fgwh.2025.1478797"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_12_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1007\/s11135-018-0757-y"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_13_1","unstructured":"Dempsey N. (2022). 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