Awareness of Antenatal Services and Health Seeking Behaviour among Pregnant Women in Osun State

Abstract

Antenatal care (ANC) plays a crucial role in ensuring maternal and fetal well-being, yet awareness and utilization of these services vary across different populations. This study examined the awareness of antenatal services and health-seeking behaviour among pregnant women in Osun State, Nigeria. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among pregnant women in Osun State, using a well-structured 82-item questionnaire to assess their awareness, health-seeking behaviour, attitude towards their health and influencing factors for their utilization. Three hundred and twenty-two (322) pregnant women participated in the study and were selected using simple random sampling technique across 8 of the 30 local government areas in Osun State regardless of their age and marital status. Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 23.0. The findings of this study revealed that most (57.1%) of the respondents were aware of antenatal services, have a fairly good (57.8%) health-seeking behaviour, but poor (53.4%) attitude towards their health. This study also revealed that there was a statistically significant association between sociodemographic variables, age, education level and income, and health-seeking behaviour of pregnant women in Osun State at p less than 0.001; and that there was no statistical significant association between age and education level, and attitude of pregnant women in Osun State at p greater than 0.05, however, there was a statistically significant association between income and attitude of pregnant women in Osun State at p value 0.045. The study highlights the 9need for targeted health education programmes, improved healthcare accessibility, and community-based interventions to enhance ANC utilization. Strengthening maternal healthcare policies and addressing socioeconomic barriers can contribute to better maternal and neonatal outcomes.