Late initiation of antenatal care and associated factors among pregnant women attending antenatal clinic at Hiwot Fana Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, Eastern Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study

BackgroundLate initiation of antenatal care (ANC) is a major public health concern. If women initiate ANC late, they do not get adequate care, reducing the chances of early detection of pregnancy-related complications. However, there is a lack of data related to the initiation of antenatal care in the study area.ObjectivesTo assess the prevalence of late initiation of antenatal care and identify associated factors among pregnant women attending antenatal care at Hiwot Fana Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, Eastern Ethiopia.MethodsAn institutional-based cross-sectional study design was conducted among 454 pregnant women. All eligible participants during the study period were included. Data were collected via face-to-face interviews, were entered into Epi Data version 4.3, and analyzed using SPSS version 22 software. The results are presented using texts and tables. Logistic regression with the 95% confidence interval (CI) was used to identify factors associated with the late initiation of antenatal care. Statistical significance was declared at P