Reproductive Health
Abstract
A randomized trial with 810 women of reproductive age in northern Uganda tests whether access to pregnancy tests affects demand for modern family planning. Participants were offered an on-the-spot urine test, a home test kit for future use, both options, or no test; offers and prices for future-use kits varied by assignment. Interest in testing was high: 62% accepted a free on-the-spot test and 97% accepted a free kit for future use, while kit purchases fell as prices rose. However, test offers did not produce a large or statistically significant overall increase in use of modern contraception at community outreach centers about four weeks later. The findings indicate demand for pregnancy tests but suggest that access alone may not change contraceptive uptake; beliefs about pregnancy risk and coordination with family-planning services warrant further study.