P-75 Knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions of parturient regarding epidural analgesia for labor at Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC)

Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study conducted on pregnant women visiting GPHC antenata clinic from January to June 2023. A validated questionnaire was utilized. The Raosoft online sample calculator was used to determine an appropriate sample size of 229 (CI 95%, Population size 560, response distribution 50% and margin of error 5%).

Results: A total of 236 patients were surveyed; most (49.8%) were within the 20-29 age range. More than half (54%) had heard of pain relief in labor, however only 16% were aware of labor epidurals. Even though 80% were fearful of the pains, only 25% showed a positive attitude towards receiving epidurals. Approximately 62% of patients were of the perception that the process should be pain free. The age range that was associated with having a positive outlook towards labor epidural were 20-29 (p value 0.005, 95% CI 0.034, 0.185) and 30-39 (p value 0.009, 95% CI 0.027, 0.185). . Secondary (p value 0.025, 95% CI -0.172, -0.012) and tertiary education (p value 0.044, 95% CI -0.183, -0.003) as well as a monthly income ≥ G$100,000 (USD 500) (p value 0.056, 95% CI -0.002, 0.161) were also statistically significantly associated with having a positive perception of labor epidural . Neither age nor level of education proved to be significantly associated with a parturient’s overall KAP score. A monthly income of ≥ G$150,000 however was statistically significantly associated with overall KAP score (p value 0.007, 95% CI 0.045, 0.275).

Conclusion: Our study has highlighted the need for an ongoing, robust, educational program for parturients if a successful epidural service is to be established and should be tailored to cater for older women, with a low income and a secondary education or less.