AN INVESTIGATION OF FACTORS INFLUENCING THE UPTAKE OF INTERMITTENT PREVENTIVE TREATMENT OF MALARIA IN PREGNANCY PROGRAMME IN THE BEKWAI MUNICIPALITY OF GHANA

Abstract

Low uptake of IPT services among pregnant women can lead to high malaria cases among pregnant women which could culminate into low birth weight, maternal anaemia and placental parasitaemia. This study sought to investigate factors that influence the uptake of IPT services among pregnant women in the Bekwai Municipality. A community-based cross sectional study was conducted in 33 communities of the Municipality. Focus Group Discussions and structured interviews were employed in data collection. The study found that 75% (247) of the respondents had malaria during their pregnancies. The study again found that 24.5% (77) of the respondents took only IPT1 whilst 45.7% (150) took IPT2. The proportion of respondents who took all the three IPTp or SP doses was 30.8% (101). The predictors of IPTp uptake identified in bivariate analyses showed that age of respondents is positively associated with the uptake of IPTp services. As the age of respondents increases, the uptake of IPTp decreases. Also, the gravida of respondents was also found to be significantly associated with use o(IPTp services. Gravida is positively associated with frequency of ANC visits. The trend of taking all the three SP doses was positively associated with increasing educational level. Respondents who made more ANC visits were more likely to take all the three SP doses. None of the respondents reported lack ofIPT or SP drugs. It is recommended that Nurses at the ANC centers should not just supervise the uptake of SP drugs at the centers but also scale up health education on the importance ofIPT in pregnancy. Key words: Antenatal Care (ANC), Intermittent Preventive Treatment (IPT), Malaria, Pregnancy, Sulfadoxine-Pyrimethamine (SP).