Assessing the reliability of phone surveys to measure reproductive, maternal and child health knowledge among pregnant women in rural India: a feasibility study. Issue 3 (10th March 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Ng, Angela; Mohan, Diwakar; Shah, Neha; Scott, Kerry; Ummer, Osama; Chamberlain, Sara; Bhatnagar, Aarushi; Dhar, Diva; Agarwal, Smisha; Ved, Rajani; LeFevre, Amnesty Elizabeth
• Other Names: author non-byline.; Agarwal Smisha author non-byline.; Arora Salil author non-byline.; Bashingwa Jean J H author non-byline.; Bhatanagar Aarushi author non-byline.; Chamberlain Sara author non-byline.; Chandra Rakesh author non-byline.; Chakraborty Arpita author non-byline.; Dumke Neha author non-byline.; Dutt Priyanka author non-byline.; Godfrey Anna author non-byline.; Gopalakrishnan Suresh author non-byline.; Kumar Nayan author non-byline.; Honikman Simone author non-byline.; Labrique Alain author non-byline.; LeFevre Amnesty author non-byline.; Mendiratta Jai author non-byline.; Miller Molly author non-byline.; Mitra Radharani author non-byline.; Mohan Diwakar author non-byline.; Moodley Deshen author non-byline.; Mulder Nicola author non-byline.; Ng Angela author non-byline.; Parida Dilip author non-byline.; Penugonda Nehru author non-byline.; Rahul Sai author non-byline.; Rajput Shiv author non-byline.; Shah Neha author non-byline.; Scott Kerry author non-byline.; Shinde Aashaka author non-byline.; Singh Aaditya author non-byline.; Tiffin Nicki author non-byline.; Ummer Osama author non-byline.; Ved Rajani author non-byline.; Weiss Falyn author non-byline.; Whitehead Sonia author non-byline.;
• Is Part Of: BMJ open. Volume 12:Issue 3(2022)
• Publication Date: 2022-03-10
• Subjects: community child health -- maternal medicine -- neonatal intensive & critical care; Medicine -- Research -- Periodicals; 610.72
• DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-056076
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2044-6055

Abstract

Abstract : Objectives: Efforts to understand the factors influencing the uptake of reproductive, maternal, newborn, child health and nutrition (RMNCH&N) services in high disease burden low-resource settings have often focused on face-to-face surveys or direct observations of service delivery. Increasing access to mobile phones has led to growing interest in phone surveys as a rapid, low-cost alternatives to face-to-face surveys. We assess determinants of RMNCH&N knowledge among pregnant women with access to phones and examine the reliability of alternative modalities of survey delivery. Participants: Women 5–7 months pregnant with access to a phone. Setting: Four districts of Madhya Pradesh, India. Design: Cross-sectional surveys administered face-to-face and within 2 weeks, the same surveys were repeated among two random subsamples of the original sample: face-to-face (n=205) and caller-attended telephone interviews (n=375). Bivariate analyses, multivariable linear regression, and prevalence and bias-adjusted kappa scores are presented. Results: Knowledge scores were low across domains: 52% for maternal nutrition and pregnancy danger signs, 58% for family planning, 47% for essential newborn care, 56% infant and young child feeding, and 58% for infant and young child care. Higher knowledge (≥1 composite score) was associated with older age; higher levels of education and literacy; living in a nuclear family; primary health decision-making; greater attendance in antenatal care and satisfaction with accredited social health activist services. Survey questions had low inter-rater and intermodal reliability (kappa<0.70) with a few exceptions. Questions with the lowest reliability included true/false questions and those with unprompted, multiple response options. Reliability may have been hampered by the sensitivity of the content, lack of privacy, enumerators' and respondents' profile differences, rapport, social desirability bias, and/or enumerator's ability to adequately convey concepts or probe. Conclusions: Phone surveys are a reliable modality for generating population-level estimates data about pregnant women's knowledge, however, should not be used for individual-level tracking. Trial registration number: NCT03576157 .