The Family Influence on the Gestational Age at Booking among Pregnant Women in Ogbomoso, Nigeria

Introduction: Family plays an important role in health seeking behaviour and education of its members. Educating an individual especially a girl child usually results in improvements in the quality of life because women who attended school often have healthier families and if pregnant they often tend to book for antenatal care early.

Objectives: This study is aimed to determine the influence of family type, educational level and occupation of women on the gestational age at booking among pregnant women in Ogbomoso, Nigeria.

Methodology: The study was a cross-sectional prospective study. It was conducted among antenatal care seekers who presented for booking in the Baptist Medical Centre, Ogbomoso. The study involved consecutive recruitment of pregnant women at the antenatal booking clinic who came for antenatal care at Baptist Medical Centre, Ogbomoso. The pretested questionnaire was used to obtain the following information: Sociodemographic characteristics, family history and history of index pregnancy.

Results: A total of 345 pregnant women at the antenatal booking clinic were recruited for the study. The age of the respondents ranged from 16 to 48 years with a mean age of 29.47±5.41 years. Not less than one-half of the subjects who were from monogamous and polygamous home booked at second trimester. A majority of the subjects who had no formal education (11, 73.3%) booked at the third trimester while the majority of the subjects who had post secondary education (56, 60.9%) booked at second trimester (P=0.01). More than one-half of the subjects who were artisans (25, 56.8%) booked at third trimester while most subjects who were civil servants (65, 61.3%) booked at second trimester (P=0.03).

Conclusion: Many women in Ogbomoso still book late for antenatal care. Occupation and educational level have a significant influence on the gestational age at booking amongst pregnant women in Ogbomoso, Nigeria. There is need to increase public awareness on the importance of educating a girl child.