What does quality maternity care mean in a context of medical pluralism? Perspectives of women in Nigeria

Abstract

User priorities regarding quality care in contexts of medical pluralism are poorly documented. Drawing on group and individual interviews with women, we interrogate ideas of quality maternity care in the context of Nigeria's medical pluralism. We found complex utilization patterns for conventional, complementary and alternative maternity care services as well as ideas of quality maternity care that stress effective coordination and integration of different typologies of maternity health services; socially sensitive and truthful providers; and socioeconomic, physical and parochial forms of safety. Informal providers were the commonly reported source of maternal health services in the study. Maternal health services in the country were also generally viewed as poor quality, characterized by pervasive abuse, quackery and lack of commitment to the needs and sensitivities of women. Convenience, availability and affordability of maternal health services, as well as sociocultural factors were major influences on women's use of services. Results demonstrate the embeddedness of women's quality of care notions in the vast socioeconomic inequities that typify Nigeria's particular form of poorly regulated medical pluralism, raising need for strategies to strengthen the delivery, coordination and supervision of maternal health services in the country.