Background Timely initiation of antenatal care can avoid pregnancy related problems and save lives of mothers and babies. In developing nations, however, only half of the pregnant mothers receive the recommended number of antenatal care visits, and start late in their pregnancy. Thus, the study was conducted to assess the magnitude of timely initiation of antenatal care and factors associated with the timing of antenatal care attendance in Axum in which studies regarding this issue are lacking. Methods An institution based cross-sectional study mixed with qualitative approach was conducted. A total of 386 pregnant women were selected using systematic sampling technique for the quantitative study. In addition, 18 participants were selected purposively for the qualitative part. The quantitative data were collected using structured interviewer administered questionnaire while the qualitative data were collected using an open-ended interview guide. Quantitative data were analyzed using SPSS version 22 and the qualitative data were analyzed using Atlas software. Multi-variable logistic regression was used to control the effect of confounders. Results The magnitude of timely attendance of antenatal care was 27.5% (95% CI: 23–32%). Unintended pregnancy (AOR = 2.87; CI 95%: 1.23–6.70), maternal knowledge (AOR = 2.75; CI 95%: 1.07–7.03), educational status of the women (AOR = 2.62; CI 95%: 1.21–5.64), perceived timing of antenatal care (AOR = 3.45; CI 95%: 1.61–7.36), problem in current pregnancy (AOR = 3.56; CI 95%: 1.52–8.48) and advice from significant others (AOR =2.33; CI 95%: 1.10–4.94) were found significantly associated with timely booking of antenatal care. Conclusion The magnitude of timely attendance of antenatal care is low. Educational status, maternal knowledge, unintended pregnancy, problem in current pregnancy, perceived timing of antenatal care, and advise from significant others were the significant factors for timing of antenatal care. Therefore more effort should be done to increase the knowledge of mothers about importance of antenatal care and timely ante natal care booking.

Background: The care given for the first hours, days, and weeks after childbirth is lifethreatening. So far, this period receives less attention from health-care providers than the care given to pregnancy and delivery. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and associated factors of early postnatal care service use among mothers who had given birth in the last 12 months in Adigrat Town, Tigray, Ethiopia. Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted from March to April 2018 among 481mothers who had given birth in the last 12 months. A systematic random sampling technique was used to select study participants. A pre-tested and structured questionnaire was used to collect the data. Data analysis was computed using SPSS version 20. An adjusted odds ratio with a 95% confidence interval and p-value less than 0.05 was used to determine the level of significance. Results: The proportion of early postnatal care service utilization was 34.3% (95% CI: 29.9%-38.5%). Mothers' use of early postnatal care service was predicted by previous early postnatal care use (AOR=2.

Background. The right to prefer mode of delivery is a crucial component of compassionate and respectful care that fosters both maternal and neonatal well-being as the failure to respect the mother’s interest increases to the risk of maternal depression and posttraumatic stress. Thus, the aim of the study was to assess delivery mode preference and associated factors among pregnant women. Methods and Materials. The study was conducted in two hospitals and two health centers. We used a cross-sectional study design incorporating 398 pregnant mothers attending an antenatal care follow-up from February to May 2018. The study excluded pregnant mothers with any previous uterine surgery including caesarean delivery from participation due to their restricted chance to prefer their mode of delivery. Data were collected by using a pretested questionnaire. Data were entered to EpiData Manager version 3.1 and exported to Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 22 for analysis. Besides, the analysis included both the bivariate and multivariable analyses to check the association between dependent and independent variables. Finally, level of statistical significance was declared at P value < 0.05. Result. The participant’s level of response was 100% (398). The age of the mothers ranges from 15 to 45 years old. The delivery mode preference of the caesarean section (C/S) and spontaneous vertex delivery (SVD) was 115 (28.9%) and 283 (71.1%), respectively. The study revealed that planned 47 pregnancy [AOR, 1.76; CI: 0.89-3.47], young age [AOR, 12.9; CI: 0.23-7.1], and primigravida [AOR, 1.24; CI: 0.29-5.2] were among the variables associated with maternal preference of caesarean section. Conclusion and Recommendation. Nearly one-third of the mothers preferred caesarean delivery as their mode of delivery due to fear of labor pain and repeated vaginal examination by the care providers. This is particularly seen in women who had received higher education level, claim their pregnancy as planned, their choice of delivery at hospital, young aged, pregnant for the first time, and those who had visited antenatal care repeatedly. This implies that policy makers and stakeholders should exert due emphasis to ongoing desire of caesarean delivery as the procedure is not without risk, if it is done without indication. For researchers, we recommend to investigate the preference of mode of delivery in a much broader aspect.