Preconception Care Utilization and Its Predictors in Women Referring to Teaching Hospitals in Mashhad: Preconception care utilization and Its Predictors

Background: It has been more than four decades since preconception care was recognized as an important part of women’s healthcare. However, most women do not seek preconception care. Therefore, the present study aimed to assess the predictors of receiving preconception care. Methods: This cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted on 1,019 pregnant women who referred to Mashhad teaching hospitals in 2019. The convenience sampling method was used for sample selection and the required data were collected through a questionnaire. Furthermore, the data were analyzed in SPSS software (version 16). Results: This study showed 33% of the women had utilized preconception care. Number of children (AOR: 0.47; 95% CI: 0.38, 0.6) , housing status (AOR: 0.45; 95% CI: 0.23,0.91) , folic acid consumption (AOR: 14.54; 95% CI: 8.75,24.16), Received information regarding PCC (AOR: 8.67; 95% CI: 5.27,14.26) were significantly associated with preconception care service utilization. Conclusions: According to the results, a different strategy should be adopted from what has been adopted so far to raise public awareness of the importance of pre-pregnancy care. Since a significant relationship has been reported between obtaining information on pre-pregnancy care and receiving this care, modifying information methods to promote public awareness seems necessary. Keywords: predictor, preconception care, utilization of care, childbearing age women, teaching hospital, Mashha