Predictors of antenatal care services utilization by pregnant women in Afghanistan: Evidence from the Afghanistan Health Survey 2018.

Background: Poor utilization of maternal healthcare services remains a public health concern in most low and middle-income countries (LMICs), including Afghanistan. Late, inadequate, or no utilization of antenatal care (ANC) services pose a great concern.

Objectives: This study assessed the predictors of ANC service utilization among Afghan pregnant women, using secondary data from the Afghanistan Health Survey 2018 (AHS2018).

Methods: In this study, we used data from 10,855 ever-married women, aged 13-49 years, who gave birth in the two years prior to the survey or those women who were currently pregnant. The outcome variable was defined as a binary variable on ANC utilization (≥1 ANC visit equals 1, and zero otherwise). We fitted a binary logistic regression model and examined the associations between ANC utilization and explanatory variables, providing findings based on univariate and multivariate analysis. STATA version 17 was employed for the data analysis.

Results: Overall, 63.2%, 22.0%, and 3.1% of women had at least one ANC visit, ≥4 ANC visits, and ≥8 ANC visits during their last pregnancy, respectively. Higher odds of ANC utilization were observed in women who could read and write (AOR = 1.55, 95%CI: 1.36-1.77), whose husbands could read and write (AOR = 1.42, 95%CI: 1.29-1.56), who knew 1 sign (AOR = 1.93, 95%CI: 1.74-2.14), 2 signs (AOR = 2.43, 95%CI: 2.17-2.71) and ≥ 3 signs (AOR = 1.55, 95%CI: 1.36-1.77) of complicated pregnancy, and those with almost daily access to radio (AOR = 1.19, 95%CI: 1.08-1.327) and TV (AOR = 1.92, 95%CI: 1.73-2.13). We also found that women with one (AOR = 0.64, 95%CI: 0.49-0.84) and more than one (AOR = 0.60, 95%CI: 0.47-0.76) parity status, those for whom in-laws and others decided for their birthplace [(AOR = 0.85, 95%CI: 0.74-0.97) and (AOR = 0.63, 95%CI: 0.55-0.72), respectively], and those that resided in rural areas (AOR = 0.89, 95%CI: 0.79-1.00) had reduced odds of ANC utilization.

Conclusion: ANC service utilization is unacceptably low by pregnant women in Afghanistan. The predictors of ANC utilization identified by the study should be considered in the design of future interventions to enhance antenatal care utilization in Afghanistan.