Utilisation of Maternal Health Services; A Mixed Methods Study of Women Attending Antenatal Care At Primary Health Centres In Abuja, FCT, Nigeria

Abstract

<title>Abstract</title> <bold>Background</bold> Due to restricted access to health care, maternal mortality rates in developing nations are unacceptably high. Adequate health-care utilisation has been regarded as crucial in the drive to enhance maternal health indices. <bold>Objective</bold> This study aimed to determine the level of utilization of maternal health services among women attending Antenatal care at Primary Health Care Centres in Abuja FCT. <bold>Methods</bold> This was a descriptive cross-sectional study that employed a mixed methods approach. The quantitative approach used a semi-structured questionnaire to collect data, while the qualitative approach involved Focus Group Discussion. Participants were drawn from women receiving antenatal care at 12 different Primary Health Care Centres in Abuja. Quantitative data analysis was done using SPSS version 25. A p-value of less than 0.05 at the 95% confidence level was considered statistically significant. <bold>Results</bold> Of the 370 respondents, 365 had complete entries and were included in the final analysis. The majority of respondents (71.5%) were between the ages of 25 and 34, were in their third trimester of pregnancy (82.5%), had at least a secondary school education (58.4%), and were employed (66.7%) In the current pregnancy, up to 82.7% of women booked antenatal care in the second trimester. Antenatal care, facility-based delivery, and postnatal care coverage were 95.6%, 80%, and 28.2%, respectively, in their most recent pregnancy, and maternal educational level and employment status were found to be significantly associated with maternal health service utilization(p&lt;0.05) <bold>Conclusion</bold> This study revealed optimal antenatal care attendance and facility-based delivery but a low rate of postnatal care utilisation, Maternal educational and employment status were significantly associated with maternal health care utilisation.