Pregnant Women’s Views Regarding Maternity Facility-Based Delivery at Primary Health Care Facilities in the Province of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa

Abstract

For women giving birth, every moment of delay in receiving skilled care significantly increases the risks of stillbirth, neonatal and maternal death. More than half of all births in developing countries, including South Africa, take place outside a health facility and without skilled birth attendants. Therefore, this has made it difficult to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals of global reduction in maternal mortality, which is a key health challenge globally, especially in developing countries and sub-Saharan Africa in particular. The study aimed to explore and describe the views of pregnant women regarding facility-based delivery. Focus group discussions were used to gather information from pregnant women. Information was collected from six groups of pregnant women who had delivered babies at the primary health care facilities in the past 5 years. Results showed several factors associated with the failure to use institutional delivery services, such as the lengthy distance from the health care facility, lack of transport, lack of transport fare, shortages of skilled staff, failure to disclose pregnancy, cultural and religious beliefs, and staff attitudes.

Antenatal Care Practices: A Population-Based Multicenter Study from Saudi Arabia

“…Adequate and early antenatal care is essential because it increases the likelihood of pregnant women undergoing crucial screening tests, detecting non-communicable diseases, and modifying lifestyle risk factors like malnutrition and smoking, which are most effectively addressed in early pregnancy. 29 , 31–34 …”

Antenatal Care Practices: A Population-Based Multicenter Study from Saudi Arabia

“…Adequate and early antenatal care is essential because it increases the likelihood of pregnant women undergoing crucial screening tests, detecting non-communicable diseases, and modifying lifestyle risk factors like malnutrition and smoking, which are most effectively addressed in early pregnancy. 29,[31][32][33][34] ANC coverage in Arabic countries, spanning from the 1990s to the most recent available data in 2019 reveals a diverse landscape of ANC services in the region. Some countries, such as Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), stand out with exceptional ANC coverage, consistently nearing 100% (Figure 2).…”