Provider-Patient Communication in Maternal Health

Abstract

The health issues of pregnant women cannot be effectively addressed without due consideration to communication. The way in which health providers communicate with pregnant women can have significant effects on health outcomes. Effective communication can help bridge information, knowledge and awareness gaps to enable pregnant women play active roles in their health issues and motivate them to patronize maternal services. The purpose of this study was to find out the perceptions of pregnant women of the provider-patient communication, using the Communication Accommodation Theory. A quantitative approach was used to conduct a survey using 120 pregnant women, seeking antenatal care at the University of Ghana Hospital. The quantitative data obtained was analysed using SPSS. The study found that pregnant women were happy with the provider-patient communication, motivating them to patronise maternal services. Also, the health providers did not discriminate among pregnant women who sought antenatal care at the hospital, on the basis of their age and education. Though the perceptions of the pregnant women were very reassuring, waiting time and lack of training for health providers were identified as barriers to effective communication. This brings to fore the need for interventions to encourage healthcare providers to communicate effectively with pregnant women.