Factors associated with late antenatal booking in Harare, Zimbabwe

Abstract

The purpose of antenatal care (ANC) is to improve the health outcomes of both the mother and the baby, and maximum benefits from ANC services are achieved if pregnant women initiate ANC services in the first trimester of pregnancy so that any pregnancy related complications may be identified and addressed. In many developing countries, including Zimbabwe, a significant proportion of women initiate ANC services later than the recommended first trimester of their pregnancy, which often results in poor health outcomes for both mother and baby. The purpose of this study was to determine the factors associated with late ANC booking by pregnant women in Harare, Zimbabwe. A cross-sectional study was used to collect data using an interviewer-administered questionnaire on 150 respondents.  The mean age of the respondents was 26.3 years and 88.7% had attained at least secondary school education. Half of the respondents initiated ANC after 24 weeks, however, there were weak associations between demographic variables and timing of booking, but none of these associations were statistically significant.