Women's perception of antenatal care services in public and private clinics in the Gambia

Abstract

We found that although women tended to be highly satisfied with both private and public ANC facilities, those attending public clinics were significantly less satisfied than those attending private clinics. The main complaints were related to the physical environment, technical process and provision of information or reassurance. Because public facilities constitute the main care providers for the general population and particularly for disadvantaged women, better management of public clinics and better training in communication skills for public care providers may help to retain women patients and improve the quality of ANC in the public sector.