Published Article

ABSTRACT

This study investigated the socio-demographic determinants of antenatal care services’ utilization among childbearing women in Akwa Ibom State. Three research questions and hypotheses were postulated. Cross-sectional research design was adopted. The population consisted of 51,083 childbearing women. A sample of 2544 childbearing women was drawn for the study using multi-stage sampling procedure. “Socio-Demographic Determinants of Antenatal Care Utilization Questionnaire (SDDACUQ)” was used for data collection. The SDDACUQ was validated by five experts. It was subjected to reliability test using Cronbach Alpha, and a reliability index of .96 was obtained after analysis. Data from 2538 completed copies of SDDACUQ were used for analysis. Mean and standard deviation were used to answer research questions, while ANOVA was used to test hypotheses 1 to 3. Results revealed that age (below 15 years), marital status (women separated and never married), educational status (women with tertiary education), were the socio-demographic variables that highly determine the utilization of ANC services among Akwa Ibom women. There were significant differences in the utilization of antenatal care services (ANC) by childbearing women of various age groups, marital status, and educational status of residence in Akwa Ibom State Based on findings, one of the recommendations made was that health educators should transmit adequate information on antenatal care utilization to the women having low utilization of the services, using suitable channels and settings in order to promote their health.

KEYWORDS: Antenatal care (ANC), Age status, Marital status, Educational status, and Akwa Ibom State