Maternal Health Information Disparities Amid Covid-19: Comparing Urban and Rural Expectant Mothers in Ghana
The Covid-19 pandemic disrupted mothers’ access to credible and reliable health information from their healthcare providers. However, the impact of the pandemic on maternal health information access among rural and urban mothers has not been studied, especially in the Global South. Guided by the cha...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Cogitatio
2023-02-01
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| Series: | Media and Communication |
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| Online Access: | https://www.cogitatiopress.com/mediaandcommunication/article/view/6092 |
| _version_ | 1797893064161755136 |
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| author | Sahar Khamis Delight Jessica Agboada |
| author_facet | Sahar Khamis Delight Jessica Agboada |
| author_sort | Sahar Khamis |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The Covid-19 pandemic disrupted mothers’ access to credible and reliable health information from their healthcare providers. However, the impact of the pandemic on maternal health information access among rural and urban mothers has not been studied, especially in the Global South. Guided by the channel complementarity theory, we examined the sources of maternal health information rural and urban Ghanaian mothers used during the pandemic. Specifically, we analyzed the role access to technology plays in determining the quantity and quality of maternal health information expectant mothers had during the pandemic. Through purposive and snowball sampling techniques, we recruited and conducted in-depth interviews with 15 mothers, eight from rural communities and seven from urban communities in Ghana. We thematically analyzed the data and found that rural and urban mothers used medical and non-medical sources to obtain maternal health information. While medical sources remained the most credible information source even amid the pandemic, the mothers equally appreciated the immense benefits of other sources, particularly the internet. Our findings also suggest that the motivations for using maternal health information sources complementarily were not limited to the mothers’ functional needs, level of interest, and source characteristics but also covered the mothers’ location, resources, and health information literacy levels. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T06:46:57Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-1a96675b80994fdb83381fd9b3df1856 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2183-2439 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T06:46:57Z |
| publishDate | 2023-02-01 |
| publisher | Cogitatio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Media and Communication |
| spelling | doaj.art-1a96675b80994fdb83381fd9b3df18562023-02-28T10:09:51ZengCogitatioMedia and Communication2183-24392023-02-0111117318310.17645/mac.v11i1.60922934Maternal Health Information Disparities Amid Covid-19: Comparing Urban and Rural Expectant Mothers in GhanaSahar Khamis0Delight Jessica Agboada1Department of Communication, University of Maryland, College Park, USADepartment of Communication, University of Maryland, College Park, USAThe Covid-19 pandemic disrupted mothers’ access to credible and reliable health information from their healthcare providers. However, the impact of the pandemic on maternal health information access among rural and urban mothers has not been studied, especially in the Global South. Guided by the channel complementarity theory, we examined the sources of maternal health information rural and urban Ghanaian mothers used during the pandemic. Specifically, we analyzed the role access to technology plays in determining the quantity and quality of maternal health information expectant mothers had during the pandemic. Through purposive and snowball sampling techniques, we recruited and conducted in-depth interviews with 15 mothers, eight from rural communities and seven from urban communities in Ghana. We thematically analyzed the data and found that rural and urban mothers used medical and non-medical sources to obtain maternal health information. While medical sources remained the most credible information source even amid the pandemic, the mothers equally appreciated the immense benefits of other sources, particularly the internet. Our findings also suggest that the motivations for using maternal health information sources complementarily were not limited to the mothers’ functional needs, level of interest, and source characteristics but also covered the mothers’ location, resources, and health information literacy levels.https://www.cogitatiopress.com/mediaandcommunication/article/view/6092covid-19ghanamaternal health informationrural mothersurban mothers |
| spellingShingle | Sahar Khamis Delight Jessica Agboada Maternal Health Information Disparities Amid Covid-19: Comparing Urban and Rural Expectant Mothers in Ghana Media and Communication covid-19 ghana maternal health information rural mothers urban mothers |
| title | Maternal Health Information Disparities Amid Covid-19: Comparing Urban and Rural Expectant Mothers in Ghana |
| title_full | Maternal Health Information Disparities Amid Covid-19: Comparing Urban and Rural Expectant Mothers in Ghana |
| title_fullStr | Maternal Health Information Disparities Amid Covid-19: Comparing Urban and Rural Expectant Mothers in Ghana |
| title_full_unstemmed | Maternal Health Information Disparities Amid Covid-19: Comparing Urban and Rural Expectant Mothers in Ghana |
| title_short | Maternal Health Information Disparities Amid Covid-19: Comparing Urban and Rural Expectant Mothers in Ghana |
| title_sort | maternal health information disparities amid covid 19 comparing urban and rural expectant mothers in ghana |
| topic | covid-19 ghana maternal health information rural mothers urban mothers |
| url | https://www.cogitatiopress.com/mediaandcommunication/article/view/6092 |
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