Women’s Knowledge, Perception and Acceptability of Waterbirth

Background: Waterbirth is practised, accepted and acknowledged in many countries worldwide as one of the natural options for labour and childbirth due to its evidence-based benefits. Despite its increasing popularity in many regions of the world, waterbirth is not yet widely practiced in Abuja, Nigeria. Understanding women’s perceptions, knowledge and acceptability regarding the practice is essential to inform evidence-based integration into maternity services. Objectives: The objectives of the study were to assess the knowledge, perceptions and acceptability regarding waterbirth among antenatal women in public tertiary hospitals in Abuja, north-central Nigeria. Methods: The study adopted a quantitative descriptive cross-sectional design. The setting was the three government-owned tertiary hospitals in Abuja. 331 women were randomly sampled from those who met inclusion criteria, and data were collected through semi-structured questionnaires. Data were analysed using SPSS version 27 and involved the use of descriptive and inferential statistics; the data were presented in frequency tables, percentages, grand means, standard deviations, and bar charts. Results: The questionnaire return rate was 90%, with a total of 331 responses. More than half, 190 (57.4%), of the women had a high level of knowledge; 131 (39.6%) had moderate knowledge; and very few, 10 (3.0%), had a low level of knowledge about waterbirth. Perception about waterbirth was positive for the majority, 278 (83.9%); the grand mean of 2.95±0.92 was greater than the criterion mean of 2.50. More than three quarters more – 255 (77.0%) of the women indicated a high extent of acceptability for waterbirth; the grand mean of 2.79±0.89 was greater than the criterion mean of 2.50. There was a statistically significant relationship between perception and extent of acceptability of waterbirth as p<0.05 (n = 408, r = 0.58, p = 0.00). Conclusion: Women in Abuja have good knowledge of waterbirth, positive perceptions, and a high level of acceptability, suggesting an interest and willingness to embrace services if offered. There may be need further studies to validate these findings.