Pregnant Women’s Knowledge, Perception and Utilization of Primary Health Centres in Ado Local Government Area, Ekiti State.
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Date
2025-12
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Lead City University, Ibadan
Abstract
Facility delivery, defined as childbirth attended by skilled health workers within a recognized health institution, is universally acknowledged as one of the most effective interventions for preventing maternal and neonatal deaths. Despite its importance there are many factors influencing its utilisation. The overall purpose of this study was to assess the Pregnant Women’ knowledge, Perception, and Utilization of Primary Health Centers in Ado LGA, Ekiti State, Nigeria. The research was guided by Health Belief Model and Andersen’s Behavioral Model of Health Service Utilization. Descriptive survey design was adopted; data were collected using a structured, validated questionnaire. Data were analyzed using frequency counts, percentages, means, standard deviations, Chi-square tests at a 0.05 level of significance with Statistical
Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 26. Findings revealed that respondents demonstrated high knowledge about benefits of facility delivery (overall mean = 2.77, SD = 0.57). A majority (97.4%) affirmed that delivering in a health facility reduces maternal complications, while 89.6% recognized the dangers of home delivery. Respondents showed very positive perception toward institutional delivery, with mean scores ranging from 4.01 to 4.71. However, certain barriers persisted, over half of the women (54.5%) reported experiencing financial, transportation problems, as obstacles to using health facilities. Chi-square analyses indicated that while awareness and perception were generally high, there was no statistically significant relationship between educational level and the experience of barriers (χ² = 8.389, p = 0.754) or between perception of facility delivery and reported challenges (χ² = 12.247, p = 0.426). In conclusion, the study established that pregnant women in Ado LGA possess adequate knowledge and favorable attitudes toward facility delivery, but challenges such as cost, distance, still limit utilization. It is recommended that government, health authorities intensify community health education, subsidize delivery costs, improve access to quality maternity.
Keywords: Knowledge, Perception, Facility delivery, Utilization
Word Count: 295
Description
Keywords
Knowledge, Perception, Facility delivery, Utilization
Citation
Kate Turabian