Barriers in health seeking behaviour among tribal pregnant women in a hilly tribal area of Kashmir: a qualitative study
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18203/2320-6012.ijrms20204884Keywords:
Focussed group discussion, Ante-natal cases, Maternal mortality ratioAbstract
Background: Maternal health is of paramount concern all over the world and has been a priority in India as well with the maternal health programs evolving over the time, addressing new arenas and overcoming challenges to reach the Maternal mortality ratio (MMR) target with quality. (1) In tribal areas various barriers in health seeking behavior are impediments towards maternal health.
Methods: An explorative qualitative study was undertaken in a tribal area of Srinagar, Kashmir, which is a rural field practice area of the Department of Community Medicine Government Medical College, Srinagar. Focus group discussion (FGD) and in-depth interviews were conducted. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the FGD and in-depth interview data.
Results: The data analysis generated following five themes: Theme 1: Perceptions and practices among tribal pregnant women in Faqir Gujree area. Theme 2: Socio-cultural influences, attitude and beliefs. Theme 3: Health system related barriers. Theme 4: Community related barriers. Theme 5: Cultural barriers among the pregnant women.
Conclusions: There is a need of continuous behaviour change communication (BCC) with pregnant women and community members. In addition to addressing these issues, the health system related issues need to be addressed and improved in order to improve access to health care facilities by these pregnant women. Thus, a comprehensive tribal-sensitive health care system incorporating the above cultural issues is required to improve the health care access among these vulnerable ANC patients.
Metrics
References
World Health Organization. Maternal mortality in 2000: estimates developed by UNICEF and UNFPA. Geneva: World Health Organization. Available at: http://www.who.int/whosis/mme_ 2005.pdf. Accessed 08 February 2020.
Sengupta A, Gode AG. A study of the maternal morbidity & mortality in a north Indian teaching hospital – a 9 years review. J Obs Gynae India. 1987:394–400.
WHO. Maternal deaths worldwide drop by third. Geneva: WHO. Available at: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2010 /maternal_mortality. Accessed on 20 February 2020.
Government of India. Family welfare statistics in India—2006. New Delhi: Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Govern ment of India, 2007.
Nair H, Panda R. Quality of maternal healthcare in India: Has the National Rural Health Mission made a difference? J Glob Health 2011;1(1):79-86.
Chandhiok N, Dhillon BS, Kambo I, Saxena NC. Determinants of antenatal care utilization in rural areas of India: A cross-sectional study from 28 districts (An ICMR task force study). J Obstet Gynecol India. 2006;56(1):47-52.
Salve HR, Charlette L, Kankaria A, Rai SK, Krishnan A, Kant S. Improving Access to Institutional Delivery through Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakram: Evidence from Rural Haryana, North India. Indian J Community Med. 2017;42(2):73-6.
Guidelines, National Health Mission, Government of India. Available at: http://nhm.gov.in/nrhm components /rmnch-a/maternal-health/guidelines. html. Accessed on 26 January 2020.
Qureshi RN, Sheikh S, Khowaja AR, Hoodbhoy Z, Zaidi S, Sawchuck D, et al. Health care seeking behaviours in pregnancy in rural Sindh, Pakistan: a qualitative study. Reprod Health. 2016;13(1):34.
Elsenbruch S, Benson S, Rücke M, Rose M, Dudenhausen J, Pincus-Knackstedt MK, et al. Social support during pregnancy: effects on maternal depressive symptoms, smoking and pregnancy outcome. Human Reprod. 2006;22(3):869-77.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
