ObjectiveSexually transmitted infections (STIs) constitute major public health problems because of their prevalence and contribution to mortality and morbidity worldwide. Healthcare seeking for STIs plays a significant role in the global prevention of STIs. We examined the prevalence and factors associated with healthcare seeking for STIs or STI symptoms among women in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA).MethodsData on 38 394 women of reproductive age from the most recent Demographic and Health Surveys of 28 countries in SSA were analysed. Percentages were used to summarise the prevalence of healthcare seeking for STIs or STIs symptoms. The factors associated with healthcare seeking for STIs or STI symptoms were examined using multilevel binary logistic regression analysis. We presented the results using adjusted odds ratios (aORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs).ResultsOverall, the proportion of women with STIs or STI symptoms who sought healthcare was 66.1%, with the highest and lowest proportion found in Liberia (85.6%) and Ethiopia (37.9%) respectively. The likelihood of seeking healthcare for STIs or STI symptoms increased with increasing wealth quintile and level of education. Working women, older women, cohabiting women, women with comprehensive HIV/AIDS knowledge, women exposed to mass media, those who had no barrier to healthcare access, and those covered by health insurance had greater odds of seeking treatment for STIs or STI symptoms. On the contrary, the odds of seeking treatment for STIs or STI symptoms was lower among married women and women who lived in rural areas.ConclusionThe findings of the study call for strengthening of policies, programmes, and interventions geared towards improving thehealthcare-seeking behaviour of women with STIs, taking into consideration the factors identified in this study.

Background: Assistance during birth delivery is an essential reproductive care given to women during pregnancy. Even with the best possible antenatal care, any delivery can become a complicated one; therefore, skilled assistance is essential to safe delivery care. Proven health care interventions such as skilled assistance during childbirth can prevent or manage these complications. Methods: The study used secondary data from all the six rounds of the Ghana Demographic and Health Survey (GDHS). Bivariate, multivariate and binary logistic regression models were applied to examine the association between some background characteristics and assisted birth delivery. Results: The results showed that birth delivery is generally assisted by Nurses/Midwives over the period under review. The proportion of women who were not assisted during delivery declined over the period. Similarly, there was a decline in the percentage of women who were assisted by traditional birth attendants. In addition, it was observed that older women were more likely to be assisted by doctors during delivery as compared with younger women. Women with secondary education were more likely to utilize the services of nurses/midwives during delivery compared with those with no education. Women from the rural areas were more likely to receive delivery assistance from Traditional Birth Attendants compared with those from urban areas. Conclusion: These findings heighten that future successful interventions for skilled birth attendants should prioritise the identified groups who were more likely to utilize the services of TBAs.