<p>Cultural Factors Contributing to Maternal Mortality Rate in Rural Villages of Limpopo Province, South Africa</p>

Abstract

Introduction: The understanding of the link between cultural affairs and maternal health is critical to save the lives of women. The South African maternal mortality rate (MMR) target for 2015 was 38/100,000 live births. In 2017, South Africa had 1,222 maternal deaths. The purpose was to determine the perceived cultural factors contributing to MMR in rural villages in Mopani District. Methods: This qualitative research and non-probability purposive sampling was used to select participants who met the inclusion criteria. Thirty women, age 40 years and above childbearing age, who had given birth in their lifetime, were sampled. Data were collected through in-depth individual interviews at the women's homes. Probing to elicit more information was conducted focusing on hemorrhage, hypertension and risk of contracting human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Data were analyzed through open coding methods. Trustworthiness was ensured by Guba and Lincoln's criteria, credibility, dependability, confirmability, and transferability. Results: From the study three themes emerged from the data as cultural factors relating to heavy, red post-delivery bleeding perceived as cleaning-out of the womb. With hypertension, gaining weight rapidly before the 20th week of gestation not reported as a pregnancy was still culturally concealed. Contracting HIV, women were exposed to unsafe sex practices due to cultural expectations of having children as a sign of femininity. Discussion: The formulation of culture congruent interventions to promote good and acceptable cultural practices that cannot harm the physical and mental status of women was recommended to reduce unplanned deaths among them.

Cultural malpractices during labor/delivery and associated factors among women who had at least one history of delivery in selected Zones of Amhara region, North West Ethiopia: community based cross-sectional study

“…Respondents who had developed pregnancy related complications were 1.61 times less likely to practice nutritional taboo than their counterparts (AOR = 1.61, 95% CI: 1.02: 2.53). This finding is similar to the study done in South Africa [ 12 ]. The possible justification for this finding could be women who had exposed for pregnancy complications may get the opportunity to have health education about the importance of taking liquid foods while they were on labor from the health care providers during the management of their complication and they may learn from the complication they face than respondents who had no any pregnancy complications.…”

“…A multistage cluster sampling technique was used. Twelve (12) Woredas were selected by using the lottery method from the three zones and cluster sampling was again employed after proportionally allocate the total sample size (845) to the selected kebeles of each woreda (Fig. 1).…”

“…Newborns improperly delivered by unskilled birth attendants, and the cultural malpractices performed during delivery are the major cause of sepsis and death. The actual incidence of maternal death due to cultural malpractices in a developing country is not known, but it accounts for 5-15% [10][11][12].…”

Determinan Kematian Ibu Di Propinsi Jawa Timur Pada Masa Pandemi Covid 19

“…Penelitian Kumar dan Agrawal (2016) dalam penelitiannya "Brought in Dead: An Avoidable Delay in Maternal Deaths" menemukan bahwa keterlambatan staf penanganan menjadi penyebab kematian ibu sebesar 56,25% (Kumar N, 2016). Pelayanan antenatal dilakukan agar dapat dilakukan pengawasan yang lebih intensif, pengobatan agar risiko dapat dikendalikan, dan dapat dilakukan rujukan tindakan yang memadai (Marabele, P. M et al, 2020;Menendez et al, 2020). Pelayanan yang dilakukan secara rutin juga merupakan upaya untuk melakukan deteksi dini kehamilan berisiko sehingga dapat segera dilakukan tindakan yang tepat untuk mengatasi dan merencanakan serta memperbaiki kehamilan tersebut.…”

Cultural Factors Contributing to Maternal Mortality Rate in Rural Villages of Limpopo, South Africa [Letter]

“…They were perceived cultural factors, which included culture and knowledge to seek care, perceived beliefs, decision-making process, and culture expectations regarding bleeding, hypertension and HIV-AIDS. 1 The critical points explored in this study are limited to “cultural practices that are practiced for women during the childbirth period in Limpopo”.…”