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  • Title: A study of social attitude towards maternity care in a rural Indian community.
    Author: Devi G, Swain S.
    Journal: Indian J Matern Child Health; 1993; 4(3):84-6. PubMed ID: 12287005.
    Abstract:
    In India, 2 obstetrician-gynecologists interviewed the heads of 300 households from various castes and socioeconomic classes in Hathiyar village in the Cholapur Primary Health Center area in Varanasi district to learn about their perception of maternal health care in this rural community. Even though most respondents believed the optimum age of marriage to be 16-20 years old, a sizable proportion (37%) believed girls should marry before menarche. Just 15.3% thought pregnant women should attend an antenatal clinic once a month. Most (83.7%) did think it was important for women to attend an antenatal clinic, if they experienced special problems, however. Most heads of households (70%) thought relatives should attend delivery. Just 5% and 1% thought the birth attendants should be a government or private physician, respectively. 87.3% of deliveries took place at home. Most respondents (62%) believed that fire should light the delivery room. The majority (80.7%) did not consider food or iron/folic acid supplementation of the diet to be necessary for pregnant women. Yet, among the upper classes, women received a nutritious supplementation for 2-3 months postpartum to given them energy and to prevent illness. The heads did not think that women needed postnatal care but if they became ill, 56% and 62% would allow witchcraft or an indigenous method, respectively, to treat them. As a last resort, 92% would take them to a medical doctor. These findings revealed misconceptions about maternal health, warranting a more in-depth, multidisciplinary study to learn why this rural population does not accept maternal health and family welfare services and, perhaps, to use the data to develop a mass education policy.
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