The current study was conducted in selected industrial areas around Ha Noi. Therefore, the
sample of this study was comprised of young women who are typical of workers in these
factories, but not representative of the general population of Viet Nam. The sample of this
study also included a much smaller proportion of ethnic minorities compared to the general
population (2.8% vs. 12.9%).
In general, the results from this study showed figures that were different from figures from
national studies. In terms of contraception, results from this study show that 52.4% women
had ever used contraceptives which is considerably lower than national average (79.5%)
(HSP, 2009). The most popular method in this sample was the condom (42%), followed by the
IUD (24%) and the pill (16%). 43% of respondents in the sample had ever heard of ECP, but
only 13% ever used it during the previous year. The most common source of obtaining ECP
was through a pharmacy (83%), followed by public health facilities (15%). 13.3% of women in
our sample had ever had an abortion; among them 31% had an abortion last year.
In the bivariate analyses, three factors were found associated with contraceptive practices:
age of respondents, marital status and residence in urban or rural areas. The older women
were, the more likely they were to have ever used contraceptives. As noted before, this is an
expected result as older women have had longer exposure to sexual behavior and
contraceptives. Women from urban areas had a higher rate of both ever and recent use of
contraceptives. They were also more likely to have heard of ECP compared to rural women.
Age is the only factor that showed an association with abortion. Abortion was most prevalent
in women aged 20 to 24 years old in our sample followed by women aged 25 to 29 years old.
The study also extensively documented experiences of physical, sexual and other forms of
violence and attitudes towards gender equity among women in our sample. Results from the
study showed that women from rural areas and with low levels of education showed
significantly higher levels of agreement with statements that justify abusive behaviors from
their husbands/partners. The proportion of women who had experienced different kinds of
violence in current study is much lower than results from national study. The lifetime and
current prevalence of physical violence by partners was 5% and 2.5% respectively (compared
to 32% and 6% in national survey); sexual violence was 1.2 and 1.1% (compared to 10% and
4% in national survey); emotional violence was 8.1 % and 5.4% (compared to 6.7% and. 25%
for national study).
Combining data for physical and sexual violence, 5.45% women reported that they had
experienced physical or sexual violence by husbands/partners at least once in their life,
whereas 2.86% reported they had experienced in the last 12 months. Combining data for 3
types: Physical, sexual and emotional violence, 10.98% reported at least one of three types in
her lifetime and 8.13% reported any of these types in the past 12 months. Combining data for
4 types: Physical, sexual, emotional and economic violence, 13.48% reported that they had
experienced at least one of four types of violence in her lifetime.