Pre-conception care is a crucial component for reproductive aged women due to its likely contribution to successful pregnancy outcomes. Nonetheless , it rarely receives as much as regard from this group especially due to a variety of reasons , namely:
Accessibility challenges-Limited access to health facilities make it hard for women to obtain pre-conception care services. The long distances and few services are discouraging to most. Also, the poor pre-conception care referral systems result in poor referrals or lack thereof of referrals prompting the ineffective delivery of services.
Lack of full planning for pregnancy Unplanned pregnancies positively correlated with the limited utilization of pre-pregnancy care services.Once a woman is pregnant , the preconception care does
as in such scenarios the women were already pregnant at the pre-conception and women’s behaviour of seeking for health care only after being pregnant were among the most perceived barriers of pre-pregnancy care services among women in
Lack of awareness-Most women lack awareness on pre-conception services majorly due to a lack of health educational activities .In addition , most women do not take initiative to research on preconception care matters. Usually ,their concerns may mainly be centred on becoming pregnant and possible challenges they may encounter during pregnancy, and not necessarily on the pre-conception issues.
Beliefs-Certain cultural or religiou s belifs may
Knowledge and experience –For some women ,having the knowledge on pre-conception care services is a reason for them not to sought for these services as they perceive that they already possess the knowledge; hence no need .For example, some women who may have studied about pre-conception issues in class , may tend not to sought the service as Alternatively, for other women the awareness of preconception services and its importance prompts them to seek the services to know more about how it is applicable to them.
To improve the access to pre-conception care services, infrastructural facilities should be upgraded and the number of health personnel dedicated to this form of care should be increased. Pre-conception care referral systems should be enhanced and improvised guidelines set up to ensure the delivery of efficient services and proper co-ordination between health care personnel be integrated. The public should be educated on the importance of pre-conception care services to create awareness on its significance. The involvement of couples should be encouraged and matters that affect even the men should be addressed. Staff should also receive regular training on pre-conception issues so that they maintain quality services.