we recruited 34 Jamaican women, 18 years and older,receivng services at two antenatal clinic sites.Participants included 15 pregnant women with at least one other child (C>O),and 19 pregnant women with no other children (C=0).The mean age of participants was 23 years (SD=5.4)and ranged from 18 to 33 year.All the women self-identified as Black,and 27 (79%) were single whereas the other 7 lived in common-law relationships.The monthly income ranged from a low of Js0 to a high of JS40000 (Jamaican currency),which at the time was equivalent to S449.00 U.S.dollars.Eleven (32%) of the participants did not know the income of their household wage earner.Most used public health insurance by the government;only 1 participant had private insurance.The mode of transportation to the clinic varied:13 (38%)walked,7(20%)used the bus,and one participant rode a bicycle.Most of the women spoke Patois in the home,but English in a public setting,as is common practice.Participant demographics are described in Table 1.
Research Question 1 focused on determining the literacy level of pregnant women attending an antenatal clinic in Jamaica,as measured by the REALM. The self-report of highest grade completed in school revealed that 17(50%) of the women completed 11th grade,which is equivalent to a high school graduate in Jamaica, whereas 15 (44%) completed less than 11th grade, and only 1 participant's education exceeded high school level. However, the actual literacy level of the women was a mean score of 40 (SD=19.3,range=2-66), which approximates reading at the 4th-to 6th -grade U.S. level (primary level in Jamaica's school system). This finding id consistent with other investigations of women's literacy in developing world regions such as