Utilization of maternal health service in Chinese pregnant and puerperal women

Objective To assess the needs and utilization and the influencing factors of maternal health service in Chinese pregnant and puerperal women.Methods The women who gave birth to their babies between July and September,2009 in three provinces were investigated with a self-designed questionnaire,and χ² test was used to analyze the influencing factors.Results Among the 1 945 women surveyed,the registration rate of systemic health management in early pregnancy was 49.77% and the health instruction rate was 82.98% in prenatal period and 52.75% in postnatal period.The rate of prenatal care was 99.33%,and 72.24% of the women received 5 times of prenatal care and the hospital delivery rate was 98.61%.The rate of postpartum visit was 42.21% and 9.51% of the women received 3 postpartum visits.The major influencing factors of the maternal health service utilization were age,occupation,education,distance to medical institution,number of children,residence,and marital status.Conclusion The time of first prenatal care is late and the rate of postpartum visit is low,and the maternal health service during pregnancy needs to be strengthened among Chinese pregnant and puerperal women.