Medicina comunitaria y educación para la salud

Abstracto

Knowledge of Danger Signs of Pregnancy among Clients of Maternal Health Service in Urban and Rural Primary Health Centres of Southeast Nigeria

Edmund Ndudi Ossai* and Benjamin Sunday Uzochukwu

Objective: Aim of study was to assess knowledge of key danger signs of pregnancy among clients of maternal health service in urban and rural primary health centres of southeast Nigeria. Methods: A cross-sectional analytical study design was used. Three stage sampling method was used to select 540 clients of maternal health service in18 of 440 primary health centres in Enugu state, southeast Nigeria. The clients were women who attended antenatal and postnatal care in the health centres. A minimum of four antenatal care visits qualified the women for inclusion in the study. Results: The mean age of the clients was 27.9 ± 5.5 and 26.9 ± 5.7 years in urban and rural areas respectively. The most recalled danger sign by the clients was bleeding before labour, (urban, 47.4%; rural, 62.6%), while the least recalled sign was swollen hands and feet, (urban, 16.7%; rural, 24.4%). A significantly higher proportion of clients in rural, had good knowledge of danger signs by recalling four or more signs when compared to urban. Predictors of good knowledge included being urban client, (AOR; 0.51, 95%CI=0.35-0.75), maternal age less than 30, (AOR; 2.44, 95%CI=1.65-3.58), being single, (AOR; 0.18, 95%CI=0.08-0.38), Igbo ethnic nationality, (AOR; 0.29, 95%CI=0.10-0.86), primary education and less, (AOR; 2.05, 95%CI=1.15-3.67), and low socio-economic status, (AOR; 0.63, 95%CI=0.43-0.93). Conclusion: Good delivery of health education during antenatal care, use of electronic media to disseminate health information and community enlightenment of women groups increased knowledge of women of danger signs of pregnancy. These activities should be sustained as awareness of danger signs is a step towards improving maternal health.