Assessment of the Challenges and Prospects of Reproductive Healthcare Services for Women in Lokoja, Nigeria.

Abstract

This study assessed the challenges and prospects of reproductive healthcare services for women in Lokoja, Nigeria. The study was hinged on three specific objectives which include ascertaining the state of women reproductive services, determining whether women have access to reproductive healthcare services, and identifying the challenges facing women access to reproductive healthcare services in Lokoja, Nigeria. This study used the Andersen Health Behavioural Model to explain the social phenomena studied; and adopted the survey research design with simple random sampling techniques as well as the stratified sampling techniques to reach and elicited responses from the 120 selected sample. Questionnaire and In-Depth Interview (IDI) were used as the primary instrument of data collection. Data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software, while the qualitative data was content analyzed descriptively to support the quantitative aspects of the findings. The findings indicated that 57. 20 percent of women in Lokoja were aware of maternal healthcare services in their areas and 68. 20 percent equally utilized it, 64.50 percent of women in Lokoja had access to maternal healthcare services because they are cheap and affordable. The major challenges facing women access to maternal healthcare services were financial constraints, ignorance, husband's restriction, not listening to media sources and socio-cultural beliefs of the people. The study therefore recommended, among others, that women should be educated and sensitized with their husbands, on the importance of maternal care.