Women’s decision in family planning use and its determinants in Ethiopia. A systematic review and meta-analysis protocol

Abstract Background: Low uptake of contraceptive use have much consequence. Despite this effect, less emphasis was given to women’s decision-making on family planning use in Ethiopia. Though there are studies conducted in different parts of the country on women’s decision-making in family planning use, there are inconsistent findings. Thus, this systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to determine the pooled prevalence of women’s decision-making in family planning use and its determinants in Ethiopia. Methods: Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guideline will be followed to develop the review protocol. All observational studies will be retrieved using Medical Subject Heading (Mesh) terms or keywords from online databases PubMed, CINAHL, Google Scholar, and grey literature. The quality of the studies will be critically assessed using Joanna Briggs Institute checklist. Heterogeneity among studies will be examined using I-squared statistics. Funnel plots and Egger’s test will be used to examine Publication bias. The Meta-analysis will be performed using STATA version 14 software. Statistical significance will be determined at 95% CI. Discussion: Improving women’s autonomy on decision-making on reproductive health services including contraceptive use has a substantial advantage. There are studies on women's decision-making in family planning use, however, there are inconsistent findings. Therefore, this review aims to determine the pooled prevalence of women’s decision-making in family planning use and its determinants in Ethiopia. The finding from this systematic review and meta-analysis will help to inform policymakers to develop appropriate interventions to improve women's decision-making in family planning use.