Health information needs and information seeking behavior of pregnant women attending antenatal clinics of Jaffna Teaching Hospital

Abstract

Pregnant women face many challenges during the pregnancy period. They need quality, reliable and easily accessible information in order to face the challenges. The aim of this study was to identify the information needs and information-seeking behaviour of pregnant women attending antenatal clinics of Jaffna teaching hospital. The descriptive survey research strategy was used in the study. The data was collected by using interviewer-administered questionnaire. A sample of four hundred pregnant women was selected from the pregnant women attending antenatal clinics of Jaffna teaching hospital using a systematic sampling technique. Collected data from the questionnaires were analyzed using quantitative techniques in SPSS software. Correspondence analysis was performed to find out the association between the information sources that pregnant mothers used and other study variables. Majority of the pregnant women (61%) searched for information either always or often. Family members and friends were the main sources of information used by the greatest number of pregnant women (63%). It was followed by public health midwives (61%) and doctors (49%). Internet was also identified as one of the sources of information used by 29% of the participants. Participants showed less interest in mass media, books and journals. The most needed types of information were pregnancy complications (55.8%), delivery complications (54%), methods of child delivery (52%) and special tests required during pregnancy (48%). The least important type of information was exercise during pregnancy. Unavailability of information was the most restricting barrier in accessing information experienced by pregnant women. It was followed by language barrier and financial status of pregnant women. The study showed that there was a significant association between the educational level of pregnant women and the information sources they preferred (x2 = 96.3, p = 0.00). Further it revealed that there was a significant association between age group and the information sources they often used (x2 = 57.7, p = 0.03). Publishing more information in native languages of the pregnant women on web based and printed media is suggested to improve the easy accessibility of health information. The findings of the study would be useful in organizing health education programs and efficient information systems to satisfy the information needs of pregnant mothers.