PERCEIVED RISK FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH ANEMIA DURING PREGNANCY AND PREVENTIVE MEASURES AMONG MEDICAL PERSONNEL IN HEALTHCARE CENTRES OF ORUK ANAM LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF AKWA IBOM STATE

Abstract

Anemia remains a significant public health challenge worldwide, particularly among pregnant women. Therefore, this study focused on perceived risk factors associated with anemia during pregnancy and preventive measures among Medical Personnel in Healthcare Centres of Oruk Anam Local Government Areas. The study was guided by four research questions and two hypotheses. This study adopted descriptive survey research designed. The population of this study consisted of 201 medical doctors and nurses in Healthcare Centres of Oruk Anam LGAs of Akwa-Ibom State and all participated in the study. The instrument for data collection was a self-developed structured questionnaire titled: Perceived Risk Factors Associated with Anemia Questionnaire r=0.87 and Preventive Measures Questionnaire r= 91. The data were analyzed using mean, standard deviation and t-test statistic. Mean and standard were used to answer all the research questions while t-test statistic was used to test the entire hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. Results showed that the medical personnel in healthcare Centres of Oruk Anam Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State indicated that pregnancy related factors (2.76±0.66) and health related factors (2.65±0.44) are the highest perceived risk factors associated with anemia while lifestyle modifications (2.97±0.49), dietary changes (2.80±0.54) and medical interventions (2.61±0.45) are the preventive measures of anemia during pregnancy. Furthermore, no significant differences were observed in the perceived risk factors associated with anemia (t-val= 0.482, p-val=0.630) and preventive measures (t-val=0.547, p-val=0.585) by cadre. The study concluded that medical personnel in Healthcare Centres of Oruk Anam Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State indicated that pregnancy related and health related factors are the highest risk associated with anemia during pregnancy while lifestyle modifications and dietary changes are the preventive measures of anemia. This implies that there is need for quick interventions so as to reduce the significant risk of preterm labor, low birth weight, maternal mortality and cardiac complications this health conditions can pose to the pregnant women and the fetus. The study therefore, advocate for regular prenatal care monitoring of pregnant women and addressing the underlying health issues by medical personnel in every antenatal visits.