A Community-Based Study Exploring the Impact of Mothers' Education on their Engagement with Prenatal Care and Childcare Resources
- 1. Assistant Professor, Department of Community Medicine, Prathima Institute of Medical Sciences, Naganoor, Karimnagar, Telangana State
- 2. Associate Professor, Department of Community Medicine, Prathima Institute of Medical Sciences, Naganoor, Karimnagar, Telangana State
Description
Background: Educated women tend to have a greater awareness of the existence of ANC services, are more aware of health problems, know more about the availability of healthcare services, and utilize the information more effectively than non-educated women. Moreover, higher levels of education tend to positively affect health-seeking behaviors, and education may increase a woman’s control over her pregnancy. In this study, we tried to analyze to what level maternal education can influence antenatal care services and childcare. Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted on 150 randomly selected mothers who have children aged less than 7 years by using a pre-tested structured questionnaire for data collection at RHC, Karimnagar district from January 2021 to June 2022. Results: Out of 150 study subjects, 12.6% (19) of the study subjects were not registered for antenatal services. The higher the maternal education more the birth spacing between the pregnancies (p<0.05), the more preference for institutional deliveries (p<0.05), the more the birth weight of the child (p<0.05), a smaller number of babies hospitalization due to illness (p<0.00001). Conclusion: This study revealed that the utilization of ANC services was relatively better for the mother’s education higher than secondary school, but they are still low. Educational status is important in having more health-seeking behavior. In this study, it proves that health education is more important than mere school education which can help to improve knowledge on ANC.
Abstract (English)
Background: Educated women tend to have a greater awareness of the existence of ANC services, are more aware of health problems, know more about the availability of healthcare services, and utilize the information more effectively than non-educated women. Moreover, higher levels of education tend to positively affect health-seeking behaviors, and education may increase a woman’s control over her pregnancy. In this study, we tried to analyze to what level maternal education can influence antenatal care services and childcare. Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted on 150 randomly selected mothers who have children aged less than 7 years by using a pre-tested structured questionnaire for data collection at RHC, Karimnagar district from January 2021 to June 2022. Results: Out of 150 study subjects, 12.6% (19) of the study subjects were not registered for antenatal services. The higher the maternal education more the birth spacing between the pregnancies (p<0.05), the more preference for institutional deliveries (p<0.05), the more the birth weight of the child (p<0.05), a smaller number of babies hospitalization due to illness (p<0.00001). Conclusion: This study revealed that the utilization of ANC services was relatively better for the mother’s education higher than secondary school, but they are still low. Educational status is important in having more health-seeking behavior. In this study, it proves that health education is more important than mere school education which can help to improve knowledge on ANC.
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IJTPR,Vol14,Issue1,Article31.pdf
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Additional details
Dates
- Accepted
-
2024-01-20
Software
References
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