Knowledge and Attitudes of antenatal towards intimate partner violence in The Gambia: a cross-sectional study in rural health facilities

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Abstract BackgroundIntimate partner violence is a severe public health and human right issue that 1 in 3 women experience in their lifetime. Women's knowledge and attitudes towards intimate partner violence might importantly determine who experiences violence from an intimate partner. This study aimed at analysing the knowledge and attitudes of antenatal towards intimate partner violence.MethodsThis study employed a descriptive cross-sectional technique to meet its objectives. Pregnant women seeking antenatal care were selected from 6 public healthcare facilities in the Gambia's upper river region (URR). We used the single proportion formula to calculate the sample size, which was 373 women. Data were entered, cleaned and analysed using SPSS version 21.ResultsA good majority of the participants had an overall good knowledge about IPV (77%). The most common behaviours of intimate partner violence known to the women were denial of money to hurt her (80.2%). Only 58% of the women knew that partners insisting on knowing where his wife is always and expecting the wife to ask for permission before seeking healthcare for herself was a form of violence against them.Eighty-seven per cent (87%) of the participants had a negative attitude towards IPV (i.e., they were not precisely against the stated forms of violence perpetrated by their partners). When asked about what would warrant them to leave their partners, 67% acclaimed they would never leave their partners despite facing violence from them. According to 36% of the respondents, women stay in abusive marriages because of their children.ConclusionDespite the relatively high knowledge of intimate partner violence among pregnant women, their attitudes tell a different story, which is acceptance of violent behaviour from their partners. More work needs to be done to sensitise women on their rights to prevent intimate partner violence.

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