MASS MEDIA EXPOSURE AND THE UTILIZATION OF MATERNAL HEALTH SERVICES IN NIGERIA

Abstract

Reducing the depth and burden of maternal mortality, improving the quality of health, and making health services accessible for women is highly desirable particularly for developing countries such as Nigeria. And, one of those factors that can be used as a tool to spur the adoption of maternal health care is health information. The rationale for this research was to determine if and how the availability of Mass Media affects the uptake of maternal health care in Nigeria. Poisson regression was employed to choose the focus of the research in accordance with accepted statistical principles. The Nigerian Demographic and Health Survey (2018) provided the data that was that was utilized by the study.  The usage of maternal health care was proxied by the average number of antenatal care visits.  The result showed that those who owned a television, a radio and used the internet had significantly higher antenatal care visits than those who did not, showing that exposure to mass media significantly influences the adoption of maternal health care.  However, the research concluded by emphasizing the need of understanding the ideas being sent by modern media, particularly with regard to health concerns. Additional suggestions are provided as well.