Perspectives of women on availing antenatal services in urban poor areas of Rishikesh, Uttarakhand

BACKGROUND Antenatal care (ANC) is the essential regular care of women that prevents potential health problems during pregnancy. In India, the proportion of women who received four or more antenatal visits was only 51% (National Family Health Survey, 2015–2016). An even worse situation prevails in urban areas where women from poor communities face greater health risks. We assessed various barriers women residing in these areas come across in availing ANC services. METHODS This study is a part of a mixed-methods, community-based study, and we report its qualitative component. We conducted the study at the residence of the study participants in September–October 2019. The study participants were women who had less than four antenatal visits throughout the pregnancy. Twelve in-depth interviews were conducted based on data saturation. Data were transcribed and themes were drawn concerning the gender analysis framework. RESULTS Through this study, we found how gender relations affect the utilization of antenatal services concerning access to resources, division of labour, social norms including the belief of husband and other family members towards pregnancy and decision-making power of women. CONCLUSION Our findings underline the importance of making the urban health system gender-sensitive and responsive to the needs of women during pregnancy. There is a need to educate men regarding maternal health so as to allay such social norms that label pregnancy as a woman’s responsibility and encouraging them to accompany their wives during pregnancy visits, thus making men a part of antenatal services.