SEARCHCROSS-SECTIONALobstetrics and gynecology, public health

cross-sectional·obstetrics and gynecology, public health, family medicine, epidemiology·PMC10353212

Seeking maternal health care in rural Nigeria: through the lens of negofeminism

Reproductive Health · 4 authors, 5 centres

AI SUMMARY

FIDELITY 100%

This summary was generated by AI from a single paper. It has not been reviewed by a clinician and is not clinical advice. Verify against the source before acting on it.

AGENT 01 · STRUCTURED SUMMARY

TRACE TO SOURCE

“

TL;DR

This cross-sectional qualitative study used focus group discussions with 64 participants in rural Edo State, Nigeria, to examine how pregnant women navigate patriarchal norms to access maternal healthcare. The central finding is that women actively negotiate, collaborate with, and maneuver around male authority figures to influence their own maternal healthcare decisions while maintaining harmonious gender relationships.

Full summary

764 CHARS

This cross-sectional qualitative study employed eight sex-and-age desegregated focus group discussions with 39 women and 25 men in Ewatto and Okpekpe communities, Edo State, southern Nigeria. Data were analyzed using conventional content analysis with NVivo 1.6 software, interpreted through the theoretical lens of negofeminism. Findings describe three strategies women use: negotiation (ascribing decision-making authority to spouses while maintaining influence), collaboration (men's constructive involvement including domestic tasks and financial support), and maneuvering (women resisting male involvement and seeking care independently). The study's use of African feminist theory provides interpretive insights that localized Western frameworks may obscure.

STUDY TYPE

cross-sectional

SPECIALTY

obstetrics and gynecology

SUMMARISED BY

AI pipeline

FIDELITY CHECK

100% · A

ORIGINAL PAPER

PMC10353212

Seeking maternal health care in rural Nigeria: through the lens of negofeminism

Reproductive Health

READ THE FULL PAPER

ABSTRACT

Abstract Background Feminist scholarship is acutely aware that health is not dependent on behavioural choices alone but on interlocking social determinants that affect people’s capacity to lead healthy lives. Women are situated within social structures that impact their health. but there is limited engagement with interpretive tools such as feminist theories that centre the realities of African women, particularly in the context of maternal health. It is imperative that women’s control over their reproductive health and autonomy in seeking care, particularly skilled maternal healthcare are understood within this context. This study seeks to examine pregnant women’s socio-cultural realities in a Nigerian context and in congruence with articulations of African feminism. Feminist scholarship acknowledges that women are situated within social structures that impact their health. Therefore, this paper seeks to examine pregnant women’s socio-cultural realities in a Nigerian context and in congruence with articulations of African feminism. Method This is a cross-sectional qualitative study of a total of 64 participants: 39 women and 25 men in Ewato and Okpekpe communities, two Local Government Areas of Edo State in southern Nigeria. The study presents findings from eight sex-and-age desegregated focus group discussions. This study reports on emergent data related to women’s decision-making in accessing skilled maternal care. Data were transcribed and translated to English. Using the NVivo 1.6 software, data were coded and analyzed using a conventional approach to content analysis. Results Findings describe ways in which women negotiate authority by ascribing the role of decision-maker to their men spouses while maintaining influence over their pregnancy healthcare decisions and actions. Negofeminism’s concepts of alliance, community and connectedness were highlighted through men’s constructive involvement in maternal health. Furthermore, women were shown to maneuver patriarchal norms to gain control of their healthcare decisions. Conclusion This study offers a different narrative from the dominant view of non-Western women, specifically African women, as oppressed passive victims who are ineffectual in taking charge of their health. From the perspective of negofeminism, women navigate patriarchal environments to yield the best possible maternal health outcomes. The current study can be useful in informing policy and programming that acknowledges women’s social embeddedness. Keywords: Maternal health, Nigeria, African feminism, Negofeminism

CITATION EXPORT

Ogochukwu Udenigwe, Friday E Okonofua, Lorretta F C Ntoimo et al.. Seeking maternal health care in rural Nigeria: through the lens of negofeminism. Reproductive Health. (2023). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12978-023-01647-3

AUTHORS

4 · 5 CENTRES

Ogochukwu Udenigwe, Friday E Okonofua, Lorretta F C Ntoimo, Sanni Yaya

1School of International Development and Global Studies, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada
2Women’s Health and Action Research Centre, KM 11 Lagos-Benin Expressway, Igue-Iyeha, Benin City, Edo State Nigeria
3Centre for Excellence in Reproductive Health Innovation, Benin City, Nigeria
4Federal University Oye-Ekiti, Km 3 Oye-Are Road, P. M. B. 373, Oye-Ekiti, Ekiti State Nigeria
5The George Institute for Global Health, Imperial College London, London, UK