Determinants of antenatal care attendance during the first trimester in Uganda

Abstract

Background: Antenatal care (ANC), skilled delivery care and emergency obstetric care, is a key element of the package of services which are aimed at improving newborn health. The first trimester under antenatal care is the first three (3) months of ANC attendance during pregnancy. This is a key strategy for improving maternal and infant health. However, women often initiate ANC after the first trimester and do not achieve the recommended number of ANC visits due to various determinants of ANC attendance. Objective: The main purpose this study was to investigate the determinants of antenatal care (ANC) attendance during the first trimester in Uganda. Methods: the data that was used in this study was from secondary data based from the Uganda Demographic and Health survey which was conducted in 2016. Female data set was used during this study and there was a review of literature as one of the methods used. Data was analyzed using STATA version 13. Results: According to this study, women who attended primary and secondary education and formerly in union showed a significant association with attendance of ANC during the first trimester in Uganda. However, other determinants like Age of the mother, parity, region, received antenatal care from the government hospital and husband’s involvement did not show significant relationship with the attendance of antenatal care (ANC) during the first trimester. Conclusion and recommendations: Social economic and demographic factors greatly influenced ANC attendance during the first trimester in Uganda. The less utilization of ANC and Delivery care services requires a search for solutions based on the knowledge, policy and evaluation of policies. According to the discussions of Antenatal care attendance during the first trimester, the significant determinants were education level and women who were formerly in union.