INFANT FOSTERING was familiar to more than three quarters of women surveyed in a gynaecological setting, but almost one quarter had no prior awareness, highlighting an opportunity to strengthen reproductive health education and counselling.
Infertility can have substantial psychological and social implications for women, particularly in African societies where childbearing is highly valued. Researchers assessed awareness of infant fostering, described in the study as child adoption, and considered the potential implications for reproductive health education and policy frameworks.
The cross sectional descriptive survey included 164 women attending a gynaecological clinic at Alex Ekwueme Federal University Teaching Hospital. Participants were recruited through convenience sampling and completed a structured questionnaire. Data were analysed using frequencies and percentages.
Overall, 125 of the 164 respondents, or 76.22%, reported having previously heard about infant fostering. However, 39 women, representing 23.78% of participants, reported having no prior awareness.
Among the 125 respondents who had heard of infant fostering, friends represented the most common source of information. A total of 51 women, or 40.80% of those with prior awareness, reported learning about infant fostering through friends.
Mass media was the second most common source, accounting for 34 of the 125 respondents who were aware of infant fostering, or 27.20%. The findings demonstrated that informal social networks and media played prominent roles in communicating information about infant fostering within the surveyed population.
Despite awareness among most respondents, the researchers identified opportunities to provide more comprehensive information through formal reproductive healthcare services.
The findings supported integrating infant fostering education into existing reproductive health programmes and developing community awareness campaigns. The researchers also highlighted the potential value of strengthening specialised counselling services for women experiencing infertility.
Such measures could provide women with greater access to information when considering reproductive and family building options and support informed decision making within healthcare settings. The study therefore highlighted infant fostering education as a potential component of reproductive health programmes and policy frameworks, while demonstrating that a substantial minority of women surveyed had no previous awareness of the option.
Reference
Chukwuma MK et al. Evaluation of Awareness of Infant Fostering Among Women in a Gynaecological Setting: A Cross-Sectional Descriptive Study. Int J Interdisc Nurs Sci. 2026;2(2):44–54.
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