Utilization of Antenatal HealthCare Services among Fishermen Population in Kanchipuram District, Tamil Nadu: A Cross-sectional Study

BACKGROUND: Considering the global and national level commitments in improving the maternal health as well as reducing the maternal mortality, assessment of factors influencing the delivery of antenatal healthcare services becomes essential. OBJECTIVES: The aim is to assess the utilization of antenatal health services and to identify the factors influencing their utilization among women of fishermen population in Kanchipuram district, Tamil Nadu. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The cross-sectional study was carried out among the mothers in Kovalam area of Kanchipuram district. Details were collected using a pretested questionnaire and analyzed using statistical software. RESULTS: The study included 284 mothers, of which 35% were illiterates. Nearly 60.21% have got registered with the Government sector, 59.51% of the mothers had three or more antenatal visits, 64.08% have received two doses of tetanus toxoid, and 73.24% have taken iron and folic acid tablets. Factors which were identified to have statistically significant association with better utilization of antenatal health services were age >30 years, higher educational status, skilled workers, those having their first child, and higher socioeconomic class. CONCLUSION: This study has reported the fact that antenatal healthcare services were not utilized fully by the community and the fishermen population being a special group has to be given the needed attention from the healthcare delivery system.