Many women in Scotland lack a basic understanding of emergency contraception and feel embarrassed to ask for it.

In a survey of more than 2000 sexually active women across the UK, 46 per cent of those from Scotland said they’d had unprotected sex in the last two years when not planning a pregnancy. This was the highest of any region in the UK. Of these, 79 per cent said they did not use emergency contraception afterwards.

Women in Scotland were least likely in the UK to know where to get emergency contraception if they needed it, and most likely to have the incorrect belief that emergency contraception has to be used within 24 hours to be effective.

The UK’s leading sexual health charity FPA released the findings to mark the beginning of its annual Sexual Health Week, and is calling for better education and information to help women avoid unplanned pregnancies.

FPA’s director of health and wellbeing Natika Halil said, “We know there are lots of reasons women may choose not to use emergency contraception when they aren’t planning a pregnancy – including that they are happy to leave it to chance.

“However, our research has shown many barriers exist for women – including a lack of knowledge of what emergency contraception is, how it works and where you can get it. There are also endless myths and misconceptions which are banded about, which leave many women with a real sense of confusion and worry.

“These often include a misplaced belief that you can’t get pregnant because of where you are in your menstrual cycle or because of your age. Worryingly many women are also told that using emergency contraception is the same as an abortion. This is completely wrong – emergency contraception can prevent a pregnancy, whereas an abortion is to end a pregnancy.

“Sexual Health Week this year is all about dispelling those myths and reminding women that using emergency contraception is a responsible choice, which shouldn’t leave you feeling embarrassed or ashamed.

“It’s also really important to think about whether there is a regular method of contraception that might be more suitable for you. For example if you know you sometimes forget to take your pill, there are long-acting methods you can use which remove the need to remember to do something every day.” Over the course of Sexual Health Week, FPA is sending out 4000 campaign packs to clinicians, doctors and pharmacists around the UK, packed with tips to help them make women getting emergency contraception and discussing their wider contraceptive needs feel more comfortable, and to ensure they understand their options.

Key findings: 42 per cent thought asking for emergency contraception can be embarrassing and said there is still a stigma around it.

More than half (52 per cent) wrongly thought that using emergency contraception effectively causes an abortion, or weren’t sure.

52 per cent said they would not know where to get emergency contraception if they needed it. This was the highest of any region in the UK.

Only 19 per cent said they thought health professionals provide enough information on the different methods of emergency contraception that are available.

Just 26 per cent of women learnt about emergency contraception at school or college.

The facts: There are three methods of emergency contraception and they can be used up to varying time limits after unprotected sex. Unprotected sex doesn’t just mean you haven’t used any contraception at all – sometimes methods can fail, for example a condom splitting.

The two emergency hormonal pills that are available are Levonelle, which can be taken up to three days after unprotected sex, and ellaOne, which can be taken up to five days after sex.

A third option, which is very reliable is the emergency IUD, sometimes called the coil, which can be fitted up to five days after unprotected sex and can then be left to act as a regular method of contraception for five to 10 years, depending on the type. It can be removed at any time, and does not affect your fertility.

There are 15 methods of contraception, including 13 for women. These include four methods that FPA call long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) because once used they can be effective for between eight weeks and 10 years. You can find out about the different methods and which might be most suitable by using My Contraception Tool via www.fpa.org.uk.