Health Status and Quality of Life of Women Seeking Infertility Treatments in Baluchistan, Pakistan

Abstract

Abstract Obstacles in health-care service delivery and attitudinal barriers contribute to women being vulnerable to increased social and psychological costs resulting from infertility in developing countries. The present study uses quantitative data to examine women’s infertility experiences and its impact on their quality of life (QoL). Women seeking infertility treatments from reproductive health-care centres in Baluchistan, Pakistan participated in the study. Findings demonstrate that infertility has a significant influence on women’s health and QoL, irrespective of age, education, years in marriage, economic background and types of infertility. Given that women also experience several additional social consequences of infertility, such as a husband’s second marriage, fear of divorce, intimate-partner violence, social stigma and family pressure for a male child, social workers must comprehend the economic, social and cultural factors associated with infertility and its influence on health status and QoL. Findings have implications for prioritising an integrative intervention plan at the micro, mezzo and macro levels of practice to address the gaps and inequalities in the health care of infertile couples.