Factors influencing the utilization of TBA services by women in the Tolon district of the northern region of Ghana

Abstract

Maternal mortality issues have become a major cause for concern especially in developing counties as they struggle to attain the Sustainable Development Goals 3.1 and 3.2. Tradi tional Birth Attendants (TBAs) have played a significant role in providing maternal health services, especially in rural Africa. Health service providers have done a lot to provide ma- ternal health services to pregnant women in Ghana yet most women, especially in rural areas, still, patronize the services of (TBAs). The aim of this paper is to determine the fac- tors that influence women in the Tolon district of Ghana to patronize the services of TBAs. The paper employed a mixed research approach and adopted the cross-sectional survey design to collect and analyse data. The study involved 360 women who have sought the services of TBAs within the last five years. Data were collected with the use of question- naires containing both open-ended and closed-ended questions. The factors that influenced the patronage of TBAs included the fact that TBA services are cheaper, more culturally ac- cepted, nearer to the homes of pregnant women than the hospital, TBAs being more caring than orthodox health workers and being the only maternity care that women know. It is recommended that since the factors that influence the patronage of TBA services cannot easily be abolished the health authorities should integrate TBA services in mainstream maternal health care delivery.