ASSESSMENT OF PREGNANT, S OBSTACLES TOWARD ANTENATAL CARE IN MOSUL

Background: Antenatal care is the routine health program of pregnant women to reduce the risk of stillbirths and pregnancy complications and give women a positive pregnancy experience. Objectives: This study aims to assess the utilization ratio of antenatal care services and to identify current barriers to the proper utilization of antenatal care services in Mosul city. Subjects and methods: A descriptive study was carried out during the period from 26 September 2019 to 1st April 2020. The study has been conducted among three hospitals in Mosul city namely: Al- Khanssa teaching hospital, Al- Salam teaching hospital and Al-Batool teaching hospital. The target population was pregnant women who attend maternity and child care unit. The study sample consists of 300 pregnant women. The data collection tool was composed of (2) main parts. The first one was for socio-demographic data about pregnant women. The second part was for gynecological, obstetric and antenatal care characteristics. It was constructed through the use of (2) option- type (yes-no). Content validity was determined by presenting the items to a panel of scientific experts. Results: study results revealed that 84% of studied women were found to have regular antenatal care visits. Regarding obstacles to antenatal care, a far distance from the center was found among 52% of study subjects. Recommendations: The study recommends establishing several antenatal care clinics in different areas of Mosul city to improve medical and nursing staff caring attitude in addition to increasing people, s awareness through health education about the importance of conducting antenatal care visits since the beginning of pregnancy. Keywords: Antenatal care, Obstacles, Utilization, Mosul