Utilization Of ANC Services Research Articles

Awareness and utilization of mother and child protection (MCP) card among mothers attending immunization OPD: An urban health centre-based cross-sectional study.

The MCP card is used as a tool for pregnant women, young mothers and family members to learn about various types of services which they should assess and utilize. The study was undertaken to see the awareness about MCP card and its components among beneficiaries in urban slum area. This is a cross-sectional observational study done in urban slum immunization OPD with a sample size of 226. Convenient sampling method was used to select the samples. Mothers consenting and willing to participate in the study were enrolled. Observed that the MCP card was issued to majority participants at the time of baby immunization (44.15%), followed by at time of delivery (31.4%) and least number received it at the time of pregnancy registration (24.34%). It is also observed that only 53.54%(121) women had read the card while the remaining didn't. Majority thought the primary use of MCP card was vaccination record (91.5%), followed by information tool (52.%). It is observed that knowledge regarding pregnancy care and its related complications leads to better utilization of ANC services. As observed in the present study a sizeable proportion of populations doesn't even read the card, and among those who read it the level of knowledge isn't satisfactory, many use the card as a vaccination record but still the awareness about various vaccines among the beneficiaries remains low.

Awareness and Utilization of Antenatal Care Services among Women in Northern Nigeria

Background: Utilization of antenatal care is paramount in achieving the MDG goal, and is a resultant effect of knowledge, and attitude of the women to the services [20-25]. There are expedient factors that have been reported in literatures as affecting the utilization of ANC such as religion, education, cultures and traditions of the people, cost etc. Lack of antenatal care and its underuse can result in a variety of unfavorable pregnancy outcomes, including intrauterine growth restriction, low birth weight, and mother and infant death. This study was done to determine the awareness and utilization of ANC in Sokoto State, Nigeria as part of an effort to achieving the millennium development goal. Materials and Methods: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study, adopting the simple random sampling technique and an interviewer administered semi-structured questionnaire. Results and Discussions: The study finds, after assessment, the percentage of Good utilization, Good knowledge and Good Attitude towards ANC services as 52.3%, 72.6% and 67.0% respectively. Crude percentage of utilization of ANC services was 87.0%. Factors influencing utilization identified were marital status and income, with odds ratio of 6.2 (95%CI: 0.88 – 43.39) and 5.4 (95%CI: 1.60 – 18.30) respectively and having p-values of 0.068 and 0.007. Although the women in Sokoto have knowledge of ANC services, their utilization of ANC services is relatively poor. Conclusion: Out of the 87.0% of uptake of ANC, only 52.3% were assessed to have Good utilization score. There is need for interventions to improve utilization of ANC services among women in Sokoto.

Does women's decision-making autonomy matter in utilization of antenatal care services in India? An analysis from nationally representative survey.

The primary goal is to examine the association between women's decision-making autonomy and utilization of antenatal care services among ever-married women in India. The entire study has been accomplished with the help of secondary data composed from the latest round of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5) conducted during 2019-21. A total of 34,618 ever-married women aged 15-49 with at least one live birth preceding five years of the survey have been taken into consideration in this study. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were conducted for proper illustration of the outcome. A sizable proportion of women did not fulfill the WHO-recommended criterion of obtaining ANC services. Utilization of full ANC services is found in some regions of southern, eastern, northern, and northeastern states, and in some districts of Gujarat. After adjusting the other explanatory variables, the result of multivariate analysis indicates that women's autonomy is significantly and positively associated with the utilization of full antenatal care services. Women who participate actively in decision-making are more likely to use full ANC services (AOR: 1.316, 95% CI: 1.197-1.446, p<0.05). Additionally, likelihood of utilization of full ANC services is high among women aged 25-34 years, are educated, have access to the media, come from richest wealth quintile, and are from southern, western, and eastern regions. Therefore, appropriate measures should be adopted to eliminate gender bias and promote women's empowerment for the overall improvement of maternal health as well as societal health.

Facility Factors Affecting the Uptake and Utilization of Antenatal Care Services By Pregnant Adolescents in Rongai Sub County, Nakuru County.Kenya

Purpose: Antenatal care plays a crucial role in fostering a sense of trust and rapport between the expectant woman and her healthcare practitioner. It serves as a platform for tailoring health promotion messages to the specific needs of the person, while also facilitating the identification and appropriate management of any maternal problems or risk factors that may arise. Complications arising from pregnancy and childbirth constitute the primary cause of mortality among women aged 15-19 years in poor and middle income nations. The objective of this study was to examine the extent to which adolescent mothers in Rongai Sub County, Nakuru County, Kenya utilize antenatal care services. The researchers obtained ethical permission from the GLUK Ethics committee, NACOSTI, and the Nakuru County Government. In addition, the researchers sought consent from the participants and ensured confidentiality by refraining from utilizing any form of identifying.&#x0D; Methodology: The research employed a descriptive cross-sectional study design, utilizing purposeful sampling and single population proportion approaches. The target population comprised of adolescent moms between the ages of 15 and 19 within the geographical area of Rongai Sub County. The data collection instruments employed in this study consisted of researcher-administered questionnaires. The survey was distributed to adolescent mothers who satisfied the specified criteria for inclusion. The acquired data underwent coding and was thereafter fed into the computer system for analysis utilizing SPSS version 25.&#x0D; Findings: The findings of the research were succinctly presented through the utilization of percentages, tables, and charts. There was a significant correlation between adolescents' negative attitudes toward ANC utilization and the results of the study (χ2 =26.306, p =.002). it was also noted that the relationship between hours of operation and adolescents’ uptake of ANC was also significant (χ2 =25.865, p =.000). Similarly long waiting hours (χ2 =12.391, p =.054), lack of trust among ANC service providers (χ2 =127.847, p =.000), and high transport cost (χ2 =15.169, p =.019), significantly affected adolescents’ uptake of ANC services.&#x0D; Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: The findings of this research demonstrate that the utilization of ANC services by adolescent and adult expectant women can offer significant contributions to the understanding of disparities, identification of barriers, and development of appropriate interventions to increase ANC service utilization. It is suggested by this study that tailored services be implemented with the aim of increasing ANC utilization among adolescent mothers in Rongai Sub County.

Facility Factors Affecting the Uptake and Utilization of Antenatal Care Services By Pregnant Adolescents in Rongai Sub County, Nakuru County.Kenya

Purpose: Antenatal care plays a crucial role in fostering a sense of trust and rapport between the expectant woman and her healthcare practitioner. It serves as a platform for tailoring health promotion messages to the specific needs of the person, while also facilitating the identification and appropriate management of any maternal problems or risk factors that may arise. Complications arising from pregnancy and childbirth constitute the primary cause of mortality among women aged 15-19 years in poor and middle income nations. The objective of this study was to examine the extent to which adolescent mothers in Rongai Sub County, Nakuru County, Kenya utilize antenatal care services. The researchers obtained ethical permission from the GLUK Ethics committee, NACOSTI, and the Nakuru County Government. In addition, the researchers sought consent from the participants and ensured confidentiality by refraining from utilizing any form of identifying.&#x0D; Methodology: The research employed a descriptive cross-sectional study design, utilizing purposeful sampling and single population proportion approaches. The target population comprised of adolescent moms between the ages of 15 and 19 within the geographical area of Rongai Sub County. The data collection instruments employed in this study consisted of researcher-administered questionnaires. The survey was distributed to adolescent mothers who satisfied the specified criteria for inclusion. The acquired data underwent coding and was thereafter fed into the computer system for analysis utilizing SPSS version 25.&#x0D; Findings: The findings of the research were succinctly presented through the utilization of percentages, tables, and charts. There was a significant correlation between adolescents' negative attitudes toward ANC utilization and the results of the study (χ2 =26.306, p =.002). it was also noted that the relationship between hours of operation and adolescents’ uptake of ANC was also significant (χ2 =25.865, p =.000). Similarly long waiting hours (χ2 =12.391, p =.054), lack of trust among ANC service providers (χ2 =127.847, p =.000), and high transport cost (χ2 =15.169, p =.019), significantly affected adolescents’ uptake of ANC services.&#x0D; Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: The findings of this research demonstrate that the utilization of ANC services by adolescent and adult expectant women can offer significant contributions to the understanding of disparities, identification of barriers, and development of appropriate interventions to increase ANC service utilization. It is suggested by this study that tailored services be implemented with the aim of increasing ANC utilization among adolescent mothers in Rongai Sub County.

Effect of COVID-19 lock down on teenage pregnancies in Northern Uganda: an interrupted time series analysis

BackgroundPregnancy and childbirth complications are the leading cause of death among girls aged 15–19 years globally, with low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) accounting for 99% of global maternal deaths of women aged 15–49 years. Despite teenage pregnancies declining in many developing countries in recent years, the COVID-19 period intensified the problem and altered the trend for most countries. We determined the effect of the COVID-19 lockdown on the teenage pregnancy trend in Pakwach district, Uganda, to understand its magnitude in our study population.MethodsUsing interrupted time series analysis (ITS), sometimes known as quasi-experimental time series analysis. We constructed a time series of the first ANC service utilization records for girls aged 10–19 years in Pakwach district, Uganda, and conducted an interrupted series analysis. We compared the two periods of March 2019 to March 2020 and March 2020 to March 2021. We used Stata 15 to conduct our analysis, performed OLS, and plotted the results.ResultsThe teenage pregnancy trend before the lockdown was decreasing by − 0.203 pregnancies per month, but in the first month after the institution of the lockdown (March 20, 2020), there was an increase in the teenage pregnancy rate of 13.9 pregnancies [95% CI: − 33.6 to 61.5], which corresponds to an increase in the monthly trend in teenage pregnancies (relative to the period before the COVID-19 lockdown trend) of 1.53 girls per month.ConclusionTeenage pregnancies increased during the lockdown. This slight increase depicted the impact of the pandemic on the teenage pregnancy trend associated with the COVID-19 outbreak. The government needs to focus on intervention to reduce this trend and avoid any further increases.

Influence of Social Factors on Utilization of Antenatal Care Services: A Case in Njombe Town Council for the Three Health Facilities; Njombe Urban, Idundilanga and ARCS Health Center

The focus of this study was to assess the influence of social factors on utilization of Antenatal Care services in Njombe Town Council. This study was of quantitative whereas, cross section research design was used to capture data at one time. Questionnaire was used to collect data for statistical analysis from pregnant women who acquire and attain ANC services, as three health facilities supported for the collection of qualitative and quantitative data. Questionnaire was found to be suitable as it captured measurable data which were suitable for hypothesis testing. The researcher employed Simple random sampling, as it was used to draw out 182 respondents from the targeted population in the context of Njombe Town Council.&#x0D; Using chi square analysis and mean score analysis, findings revealed that social factors had significant influence on the utilization of ANC services for pregnant women in Njombe Town Council. It was further found out that, husband communication with pregnant women was highly contributing to their partners to effectively utilize ANC services when compared with the communication by pregnant women with the health workers and relatives. Also, it was found out that pregnant women with secondary level of education were utilizing more ANC services when compared with pregnant women with other levels of education. Based on these findings this study concludes that social factors was significant influencing utilization of ANC services. This study recommends that professional training to the health cares for providing health care on ANC services to pregnant women to regularly access ANC services, should be implemented by the government in order to sufficiently improve provision of ANC services hence reduce potential risks for the mother and child throughout the maternity period.

Antenatal care and its association with pregnancy outcomes at tertiary care hospital, Jhalawar

Background: Low birth weight is a major public health problem in India. Amongst several many factors affecting birth weight, the two factors are demographic characteristics of mothers and utilization of antenatal care services after timely registration of pregnancy. Aims were to access ANC and its association with pregnancy outcomes at Jhalawar medical college, Jhalawar Rajasthan. Methods: All the pregnant women were admitted to the maternity ward for delivery in November 2022. The interview consisted of a demographic characteristic of mothers, utilization of ANC services, live birth weight of the baby, and records of the mother from the hospital. Data collection was done from the maternity ward and vaccination site. It was a hospital-based cross-sectional study. Results: Among mothers who registered in 1st trimester, 81.6% delivered at full term, 77% of new-born were normal birth weight and only 8.5% of new-born needed NICU admission; compared to those who registered in 2nd and 3rd trimesters delivered at full term 67.1% and 55% respectively, 63.3% and 50% new-born had normal birth weight and NICU admission needed by 17.7% and 55% new-born needed NICU admission respectively. Those mothers who received ≥4 ANC visits had delivered 186 (78.8%) new-born with normal birth weight and required NICU admission for 24 (10.2%) new-born as compared to those who had &lt;4 ANC visits delivered 109 (64.9.8%) new-born with normal birth weight. Conclusions: Early registration of pregnancy prevents chances of LBW baby, long stay in NICU also leads to a reduction in preterm delivery.

Factors Affecting the Utilization of Antenatal Care Service among Mothers Having Under 2 Years Children

Background: The Antenatal care period is the time between immediately conceptions after to before birth baby. The objective of this research is to find out factor associated with ANC service utilization by mothers.&#x0D; Methods: Community based analytical cross sectional study was conducted in Junichande rural municipality, Jajarkot among mother have child under two years of age data is collected through interview method. Descriptive analysis and chi- square test were performed.&#x0D; Results: This study shows more than half of the (58.8%) mother had completed ANC. Ethnicity, education level, husband occupation, availability of essential drugs and equipment, satisfaction behavior of health worker and proper physical infrastructure are the factors that influence the ANC care utilization which were found significantly associated with ANC utilization. The main reason for not receiving ANC among mother were lack of awareness.&#x0D; Conclusions: This study suggest health care providers and policy maker to make aware mothers on maternal complication to prevent and neonatal mortality and increase ANC utilization.

Barriers Related to Antenatal Care Utilization at Primary Health Care Level in Pregnant Women of Hazro District Attock

Background: Maternal and newborn mortality is a global public health issue. Pakistan is lagging much behind in target of improving maternal and child health due to underutilization of antenatal care services. Aim: To determine utilization of the ANC services by pregnant women and barriers in utilization of ANC services at primary health care level of Hazro District Attock. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in Hazro of District Attock, Pakistan with sample size of 425 pregnant women in their third trimester selected by simple random sampling technique over a period of six months from Jan 2021 to Jun 2021. A structured Questionnaire was used for the data collection regarding the barriers related to utilization of antenatal care services by interview. Analysis was done using SPSS version 23. Results: The mean age of women was 27.76±5.41 years with 75.8% were from rural side. In socioeconomic status 60.5% women had high, 33.4% had middle and 6.1% had low status of socioeconomic. The complete utilization of antenatal cares were observed in 62.8% women. We found distance of health care facility (p=0.006), transport availability (p=0.0001), cost of transport (p=0.0001), availability of personnel and services (p=0.006), ambulance availability (p=0.006) and working hours of health care facility (p=0.004) as a main barriers. Practical implication: The results of current study will help in providing MCH services at door step with proper planning to minimize the barriers in utilization of ANC services for the community. Conclusions: We conclude that Utilization of MCH services by pregnant women at primary care level in Hazro of District Attock was low i.e. 62.8%. The barriers in the utilization of MCH services at PHC level were financial poverty crisis, distance of antenatal care facility, transport availability, cost of transport, poor medical facilities, absence of ambulance and working hours are important barriers in seeking and availing antenatal care services. Keywords: ANC services, pregnant women, barriers, utilization, primary health care level, District Attock

Accessibility and utilization of antenatal care services in sub-Saharan Africa during the COVID-19 pandemic: A rapid review.

Control measures for the COVID-19 pandemic brought unprecedented challenges to health care delivery. Some countries in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) stopped the provision of essential health care except for those services that were deemed emergencies or life-threatening. A rapid review was conducted on March 18, 2022, on the accessibility and utilization of antenatal care services in sub-Saharan Africa during the COVID-19 pandemic. PubMed, Google Scholar, SCOPUS, and the World Health Organization library databases were searched for relevant studies. A modified Population, Intervention, Control, and Outcomes (PICO) framework informed the development of the search strategy. The review included studies conducted within Africa that described the availability, access, and utilization of antenatal services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Eighteen studies met the inclusion criteria. This review revealed a reduction in access to ANC services, an increase in the number of home deliveries, and a reduction in the number of women attending ANC visits during the COVID-19 pandemic. A decrease in ANC service utilization was reported in some studies in the review. Barriers to ANC access and utilization during the COVID-19 pandemic included movement restrictions, limited transport access, fear of contracting COVID-19 at the health facilities, and facility barriers. The use of telemedicine needs to be improved in African countries to allow for the continued provision of health services during pandemics. In addition, there should strengthening of community involvement in the provision of maternal health services post-COVID-19 so that services may be able to better withstand future public health emergencies.

Number of antenatal care visits and associated factors among reproductive age women in Sub-Saharan Africa using recent demographic and health survey data from 2008-2019: A multilevel negative binomial regression model.

Antenatal care is one of the best strategies for maternal and neonatal mortality reduction. There is a paucity of evidence on the mean number of ANC visits and associated factors in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). This study aimed to investigate the mean number of ANC visits and associated factors among reproductive-age women in Sub-Saharan Africa using the Demographic and Health Survey conducted from 2008 to 2019. A total of 256,425 weighted numbers of women who gave birth five years before the survey were included. We used STATA version 14 for data management and analysis. A multilevel negative binomial regression model was fitted. Finally, the Adjusted Incident Rate Ratio (AIRR) with its 95% CI confidence interval was reported. Statistical significance was declared at P-value < 0.05. The mean number of ANC visits among women who gave birth five years before the survey in SSA was 3.83 (95% CI = 3.82, 3.84) Individual-level factors such as being aged 36-49 years (AIRR = 1.20, 95% CI = 1.18,1.21), having secondary education &above (AIRR = 1.44, 95% CI = 1.42, 1.45), having rich wealth status (AIRR = 1.08, 95% CI = 1.07, 1.09), media exposure (AIRR = 1.10, 95% CI = 1.09,1.11), and grand multiparity (AIRR = 0.90, 95% CI = 0.89, 0.91) were significantly associated with the number of ANC visits. Furthermore, rural residence (AIRR = 0.90, 95% CI = 0.89, 0.91), Western SSA region (AIRR = 1.19, 95% CI = 1.18, 1.20) and being from a middle-income country (AIRR = 1.09, 95% CI = 1.08, 1.10) were community-level factors that had a significant association with the number of ANC visits. The mean number of ANC visits in SSA approximates the minimum recommended number of ANC visits by the World Health Organization. Women's educational status, women's age, media exposure, parity, planned pregnancy, wealth status, residence, country's income, and region of SSA had a significant association with the frequency of ANC visits. This study suggests that addressing geographical disparities and socio-economic inequalities will help to alleviate the reduced utilization of ANC services.

Factors associated with the utilization of antenatal care services among pregnant women in Eswatini - A cross-sectional study.

The study aimed to assess the utilization of antenatal care services and its associated factors among pregnant women in Eswatini. A cross-sectional study was adopted. Convenience sampling was conducted in a public referral hospital in central Eswatini from 1st of August to the 30 of September 2021. A total of 400 newly delivered women who met the inclusion criteria were recruited. SPSS version 22.0 was used to analyze data including descriptive and bivariate analysis. Results indicated that only 13% of pregnant women booked their first ANC in the first trimester and 24.8% of them attended less than four ANC visits. Maternal education, gestational age, gravity, pregnant-related complications, medical history, and maternal health literacy were significantly associated with the utilization of ANC services (p < .05). To increase the utilization of ANC service, healthcare professionals should pay special attention to pregnant women with tertiary education, gave birth below 38 weeks, multi-gravities, medical history, and poor maternal health literacy.

Examining the Effects of Mobile Telephone Communication on the Utilization of Antenatal Care Services Among Expectant Mothers in Kyotera And Rakai Districts, Uganda

Uganda still grapples with a high maternal mortality rates of 336 deaths per 100,000. Expectant mothers across the country lack awareness about the availability of antenatal care services; yet attendance of antenatal care services during pregnancy is crucial in protecting the health of women and unborn children. This article describes a protocol for investigating the effectiveness of mobile telephone communication interventions on the utilization of antenatal care services among expectant mothers in the districts of Kyotera and Rakai Districts in Uganda. Under the protocol, 28 health facilities in the districts of Kyotera and Rakai will be selected using simple random sampling and allocated into the intervention and control arms at a ratio of 1:1. A total of 2224 expectant mothers receiving antenatal care from the sampled health facilities will be recruited using systematic sampling. Expectant mothers receiving antenatal care from facilities allocated into the intervention arm will receive mobile telephone voice and text messages reminders for scheduled ANC visits. The mobile telephone messages will further provide maternal health information and availability of ANC services on a fortnightly basis. On the other hand, expectant mothers receiving antenatal care from facilities allocated into the control group will not get any reminders for scheduled ANC visit and maternal health information through the mobile telephone communication platform. Expectant mothers in the control arm will receive standard maternal health care without reminders. Expectant mothers in both groups will provide baseline data, midterm data will be obtained from the ANC registers at 6 moths while end of term data will be collected after an intervention period of 12months. The data collected will include the number of antenatal care visits attended, antenatal care services obtained from the health facilities, sociodemographic factors and mobile telephone usage, ownership and knowledge. The anticipated outcomes are; increased awareness and utilization of ANC services.

Utilization of Maternal Health Care Services in Province 2, Nepal

This study aims at assessing the utilization of maternal health care service in province 2. Maternal health still remains a public health problem in province 2 though it has been improving in the last decade since the number of women seeking antenatal care has increased. This study helps to analyze the pregnancy risk can be identified, control, managed and contributes to reducing factor the maternal mortality. This study is based on data of Nepal Demographic and Health Survey 2016. The sample size consists of 571 currently married women, age groups 15-49 who had a live birth in the 5 years preceding the survey. This study showed that dependent variables means women who had attend ANC as 4 or more visits and the women who had attended ANC as less than 4 times visits. In this study the utilization of maternal health care based on factors like women’s age, level of education, poor wealth quintile are responsible. In province 2, fewer women are using ANC services. In order to address the existing gap and variation in ANC service utilization, particular attention should be given to women from less education, poor wealthquintile, utilization of services among older age group. In province 2, ANC visit and 4 times is highest of age group 35-49 (44%) followed by 25-34 age group (31%) and least of age group 15- 24 (29%) mothers are using ANC services. While talking about education level, near about one third percent (32%) of respondents do not have any formal education. These factors still make problem to mothers using of ANC services .Special emphasis on women’s education plays a vital role to increase the utilization of maternal health care. This study put forward the need for efforts from government and other agencies should implement the proper policies and programs to bring an improvement in the use of maternal health care services in Nepal.

An assessment of knowledge, utilization, and perceptions on antenatal care services among women in Nimba County, Liberia

Liberia registers an exponential mortality rate in developing Sub-Saharan countries in Africa. Inadequate utilization of antenatal care is a leading cause of the higher infant mortality rates recorded in Liberia. Thus, this study seeks to assess knowledge and socio-demographic factors that thwart the utilization of ANC services among women between 15 and 49 years in Nimba County, Liberia. The study applied quantitative and qualitative research design. A sample of 167 was selected using a systematic sampling technique. The SPSS Software Version 23.0 was used to analyze the data collected statistically. Results indicated that 54.5 % of the sample were between 15 – 25 years. Socio-demographic characteristics such as age (χ 2= 0.902), df= 3, P= 0.825), were not significant with ANC attendance and the level of knowledge was significant (χ 2=5.653 df =1 P=0.017). Further, 150 women in the sample had adequate knowledge of ANC services. The high level of knowledge among respondents was significant (χ 2=5.653 df =1 P=0.017) with ANC attendance. In addition, 83.8% attended ANC services, and 77.8% delivered their babies at health centres. One of the noticeable challenges cited by respondents in this study was the distance to facilities with 64%. Most people were knowledgeable about ANC services, which affected their decision to utilize ANC services, while demographic factors were not significant. However, the study has established inadequate medication and distance to the nearest facility foiled the utilization of ANC services. Therefore, this study recommends that the government ensures that rural Liberia’s health facilities are equipped with medicines and accessible and aggressively conducts civic education or campaigns to create awareness about the ANC services. Keywords: Antenatal care, pregnancy, health workers

Assessing essential new born care practice and associated factors in mothers who gave birth within the last 6 months in east badewacho woreda, hadiyya zone, Ethiopia

Background: Every year, more than 2.7 million new-borns die before reaching neonatal age in the world, with the majority of these deaths occurring at home. Surprisingly, half of these occur within the first 24 hours of delivery, and 75% occur in the early neonatal period. One low-cost approach to improving new-born baby health outcomes is to promote essential new-born care practices. Objective: Thus, the purpose of this study was to evaluate essential new-born care practices and associated factors among mothers who gave birth within the last 6 months in East Badewacho woreda, Hadiyya zone. Methods: From March 1 to April 30, 2018, a community-based cross-sectional study was designed. The sampled population consisted of 399 mothers who had live births within the previous six months, as determined by a multistage random sampling technique. The data was collected using a semi-structured questionnaire and entered into Epi-data version 3.1 before being exported to SPSS version 21 for analysis. A binary logistic regression analysis with a 95% confidence interval was performed. Results: Less than half of the mothers (34.1 %) practice essential new-born care. The husband's educational status [AOR=0.24, CI (0.089, 0.64)] and [AOR=0.314, CI (0.126, 0.78)], place of delivery [AOR=0.024, CI (0.009, 0.068)] and knowledge of essential new-born care [AOR=2.03, CI (1.223,3.371)] were significant predictors of essential new-born care practice. Conclusion: The study's findings revealed that essential new-born care was not widely practiced in East Badewacho Woreda. As a result, strengthen the link between health centers and health posts in order to increase ANC, institutional delivery, and PNC service utilization.

Critical factors associated with postpartum maternal death in Ethiopia.

BackgroundGlobally most maternal deaths occur during the postpartum period; however, the burden is disproportionately higher in some Sub-Saharan African countries including Ethiopia. According to Ethiopian Ministry of Health’s annual report, in 2019 alone, nearly 70% of maternal deaths happen during the postpartum period. Although several studies have been conducted on postpartum maternal deaths in Ethiopia, most of the studies were focused either on individual-level or district-level determinants with limited emphasis on the timing of death and in relatively small and localized areas. Therefore, this study aimed at identifying the determinants of postpartum death both at an individual and districts level, which could shed light on designing pragmatic policies to reduce postpartum maternal death.MethodsThe study utilized secondary data obtained from the Ethiopian maternal death surveillance system. A total of 4316 reviewed maternal death from 645 districts of Ethiopia were included in the analysis. A multilevel multinomial logistic regression model was applied to examine factors significantly associated with postpartum maternal death in Ethiopia.ResultThe findings revealed that 65.1% of maternal deaths occurred during the postpartum period. The factors associated with postpartum death included previous medical history (history of ANC follow up and party), medical causes (obstetrics haemorrhage, hypertensive disorder of pregnancy, pregnancy-related infection, and non-obstetrics complication), personal factors (poor knowledge of obstetrics complication), and facility-level barriers (shortage of life-saving maternal commodities and delay in receiving treatment).ConclusionAlmost seven in ten maternal deaths happen during the postpartum period. The rate was even higher for some women based on their previous medical history, level of awareness about obstetrics complication, medical conditions, as well as the readiness of the health facility at which the women was served. Since the postpartum period is identified as a critical time for reducing maternal death, policies and actions must be directed towards improving health education, ANC service utilization, and facility-level readiness.

Assessment of Knowledge and Utilization of Maternal and Neonatal Health services in Public Hospitals of district Dera Ghazi Khan

Background: Poor utilization of healthcare services during pregnancy, child delivery, and postpartum is a significant cause of maternal and child mortality. Antenatal and postnatal care is the most effective intervention for maternal and infant mortality and morbidity, especially in areas where women's general health is poor. Objectives: This study was conducted to find out the mother's knowledge about maternal and neonatal services to determine the utilization of maternal and neonatal services in public hospitals of District Dera Ghazi Khan. Methodology: A cross-sectional study was conducted in a public hospital in Dera Ghazi Khan. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data about the knowledge and utilization of antenatal care services among pregnant women. Results:The findings of the present study showed that 58.4% of respondents have good knowledge of antenatal care, while 41.6% showed poor ability. Among total respondents, 46.32% showed positive utilization of ANC services, while 53.68% showed poor utilization. A statistically significant difference has been found between respondents' income and ANC knowledge (p=0.02). A statistically significant difference was found between respondents' education and ANC knowledge (p=0.01). Among respondents who have their first pregnancy, 45(72.58%) have good ANC service utilization (p=0.002). Among respondents who were satisfied with the ANC services, 81(89.01%) were utilizing early ANC, whereas 10 (10.98%) were utilizing late ANC services (p=0.01). Conclusion: Overall findings of this research have shown that respondents' knowledge and utilization of ANC were not satisfactory. For more improvement, there is a need to educate women and provide them with adequate facilities to utilize maternal and neonatal care services.

Utilization of Maternal Health Services in Slum Area of Butwal Sub-Metropolitian City

Background: High maternal morbidity and mortality has been a major public health problem in Nepal which may be due to the low utilization of maternal health services in Nepal. Utilization of maternal services is found very low in slum areas as compared to upscale areas. This study aims to find out the prevalence of utilization of maternal health services and its associated factors in slum areas of Butwal sub-Metropolitan city.&#x0D; Methods: A community based cross sectionalstudy was conducted among 202 women who had given birth to baby within 1 year. Semi-structured questionnaire and face to face interview was done to collect the data. Descriptive as well as inferential statistics were used to analyze the data.&#x0D; Results:The results showed thatabout 81.18% women had taken complete ANC and 34.65% had taken complete PNC services as per protocol of WHO. Multivariate logistic regression showed that respondent education, monthly income, nearest to health care facilities, knowledge level, and women’s autonomy was found to be associated significantly with complete utilization of ANC services. Similarly, Respondent occupation and nearest to health care facilities were found to be associated significantly with complete utilization of PNC.&#x0D; Conclusion: Though ANC utilization was found to be satisfactory but PNC utilization was found very low so more focused should be given to increase the utilization of PNC services in slum area.&#x0D;