Clinics in Mother and Child Health

Abstract

Socio-Cultural Factors Associated with Antenatal Services Utilization: A Cross-Sectional Study in Eastern Nepal

 Krishna Kumar Deo and Ravi Kumar Bhaskar

Background: This study was done to assess the socio-economic factors associated with Antenatal care (ANC) service utilization in Eastern Nepal.

Methods: A cross-sectional quantitative study was conducted in Sunsari district of Eastern Nepal. A total of 372 Women delivered within period of one year preceding and this study were interviewed through household visit.

Results: Logistic regression analyses revealed that women exposed to media had more than three times higher chance of receiving four or more ANC services (AOR=3.48, 95%CI:1.20-10.05). Similarly, women from advantaged ethnicity had more than two times higher chance of having four or more ANC visits than respondents who were from disadvantaged ethnicity (AOR=2.43, 95%CI: 2.04-6.92). Similarly, women having higher level of autonomy were nearly three times more likely to have four or more ANC visits than the women having lower level of autonomy (AOR= 2.86, 95%CI: 1.47-5.64)).Similarly richer women were two times more likely to have four or more ANC visits than poorer women (AOR=2.28, 95%CI: 1.06-5.25).

Conclusion: Relatively advantaged ethnicity, higher rank of women's autonomy, good knowledge on maternal health service and knowledge on incentive upon completion of ANC, media exposure with maternal health service related massages and higher wealth rank were found significantly associated with 4 time ANC service utilization.