Factors influencing women's preference for health facility deliveries in Jharkhand state, India: a cross sectional analysis.

BACKGROUND: Expanding institutional deliveries is a policy priority to achieve MDG5. India adopted a policy to encourage facility births through a conditional cash incentive scheme, yet 28% of deliveries still occur at home. In this context, it is important to understand the care experience of women who have delivered at home, and also at health facilities, analyzing any differences, so that services can be improved to promote facility births. This study aims to understand women's experience of delivery care during home and facility births, and the factors that influence women's decisions regarding their next place of delivery. METHOD: A community-based cross-sectional survey was undertaken in a district of Jharkhand state in India. Interviews with 500 recently delivered women (210 delivered at facility and 290 delivered at home) included socio-demographic characteristics, experience of their recent delivery, and preference of future delivery site. Data analysis included frequencies, binary and multiple logistic regressions. RESULTS: There is no major difference in the experience of care between home and facility births, the only difference in care being with regard to pain relief through massage, injection and low cost of delivery for those having home births. 75% women wanted to deliver their next child at a facility, main reasons being availability of medicine (29.4%) and perceived health benefits for mother and baby (15%). Women with higher education (AOR = 1.67, 95% CI = 1.04-3.07), women who were above 25 years (AOR = 2.14, 95% CI = 1.26-3.64), who currently delivered at facility (AOR = 5.19, 95% CI = 2.97-9.08) and had health problem post-delivery (AOR = 1.85, 95% CI = 1.08-3.19) were significant predictors of future facility-based delivery. CONCLUSION: The predictors for facility deliveries include, availability of medicines and supplies, potential health benefits for the mother and newborn and the perception of good care from the providers. There is a growing preference for facility delivery particularly among women with higher age group, education, income and those who had antennal checkup. In order to uptake facility births, the quality improvement initiatives should regularly assess and address women's experiences of care.

Determinants of women's satisfaction with maternal health care: a review of literature from developing countries.

BACKGROUND: Developing countries account for 99 percent of maternal deaths annually. While increasing service availability and maintaining acceptable quality standards, it is important to assess maternal satisfaction with care in order to make it more responsive and culturally acceptable, ultimately leading to enhanced utilization and improved outcomes. At a time when global efforts to reduce maternal mortality have been stepped up, maternal satisfaction and its determinants also need to be addressed by developing country governments. This review seeks to identify determinants of women's satisfaction with maternity care in developing countries. METHODS: The review followed the methodology of systematic reviews. Public health and social science databases were searched. English articles covering antenatal, intrapartum or postpartum care, for either home or institutional deliveries, reporting maternal satisfaction from developing countries (World Bank list) were included, with no year limit. Out of 154 shortlisted abstracts, 54 were included and 100 excluded. Studies were extracted onto structured formats and analyzed using the narrative synthesis approach. RESULTS: Determinants of maternal satisfaction covered all dimensions of care across structure, process and outcome. Structural elements included good physical environment, cleanliness, and availability of adequate human resources, medicines and supplies. Process determinants included interpersonal behavior, privacy, promptness, cognitive care, perceived provider competency and emotional support. Outcome related determinants were health status of the mother and newborn. Access, cost, socio-economic status and reproductive history also influenced perceived maternal satisfaction. Process of care dominated the determinants of maternal satisfaction in developing countries. Interpersonal behavior was the most widely reported determinant, with the largest body of evidence generated around provider behavior in terms of courtesy and non-abuse. Other aspects of interpersonal behavior included therapeutic communication, staff confidence and competence and encouragement to laboring women. CONCLUSIONS: Quality improvement efforts in developing countries could focus on strengthening the process of care. Special attention is needed to improve interpersonal behavior, as evidence from the review points to the importance women attach to being treated respectfully, irrespective of socio-cultural or economic context. Further research on maternal satisfaction is required on home deliveries and relative strength of various determinants in influencing maternal satisfaction.

"Neither we are satisfied nor they"-users and provider's perspective: a qualitative study of maternity care in secondary level public health facilities, Uttar Pradesh, India.

BACKGROUND: Quality of care provided during childbirth is a critical determinant of preventing maternal mortality and morbidity. In the studies available, quality has been assessed either from the users' perspective or the providers'. The current study tries to bring both perspectives together to identify common key focus areas for quality improvement. This study aims to assess the users' (recently delivered women) and care providers' perceptions of care to understand the common challenges affecting provision of quality maternity care in public health facilities in India. METHODS: A qualitative design comprising of in-depth interviews of 24 recently delivered women from secondary care facilities and 16 health care providers in Uttar Pradesh, India. The data were analysed thematically to assess users' and providers' perspectives on the common themes. RESULTS: The common challenges experienced regarding provision of care were inadequate physical infrastructure, irregular supply of water, electricity, shortage of medicines, supplies, and gynaecologist and anaesthetist to manage complications, difficulty in maintaining privacy and lack of skill for post-delivery counselling. However, physical access, cleanliness, interpersonal behaviour, information sharing and out-of-pocket expenditure were concerns for only users. Similarly, providers raised poor management of referral cases, shortage of staff, non-functioning of blood bank, lack of incentives for work as their concerns. DISCUSSION: The study identified the common themes of care from both the perspectives, which have been foundrelevant in terms of challenges identified in many developing countries including India. The study framework identified new themes like management of emergencies in complicated cases, privacy and cost of care which both the group felt is relevant in the context of providing quality care during childbirth in low resource setting. The key challenges identified by both the groups can be prioritized, when developing quality improvement program in the health facilities. The identified components of care can match the supply with the demand for care and make the services truly responsive to user needs. CONCLUSION: The study highlights infrastructure, human resources, supplies and medicine as priority areas of quality improvement in the facility as perceived by both users and providers, nevertheless the interpersonal aspect of care primarily reported by the users must also not be ignored.

Clean birth kits to improve birth practices: development and testing of a country level decision support tool.

BACKGROUND: Clean birth practices can prevent sepsis, one of the leading causes of both maternal and newborn mortality. Evidence suggests that clean birth kits (CBKs), as part of package that includes education, are associated with a reduction in newborn mortality, omphalitis, and puerperal sepsis. However, questions remain about how best to approach the introduction of CBKs in country. We set out to develop a practical decision support tool for programme managers of public health systems who are considering the potential role of CBKs in their strategy for care at birth. METHODS: Development and testing of the decision support tool was a three-stage process involving an international expert group and country level testing. Stage 1, the development of the tool was undertaken by the Birth Kit Working Group and involved a review of the evidence, a consensus meeting, drafting of the proposed tool and expert review. In Stage 2 the tool was tested with users through interviews (9) and a focus group, with federal and provincial level decision makers in Pakistan. In Stage 3 the findings from the country level testing were reviewed by the expert group. RESULTS: The decision support tool comprised three separate algorithms to guide the policy maker or programme manager through the specific steps required in making the country level decision about whether to use CBKs. The algorithms were supported by a series of questions (that could be administered by interview, focus group or questionnaire) to help the decision maker identify the information needed. The country level testing revealed that the decision support tool was easy to follow and helpful in making decisions about the potential role of CBKs. Minor modifications were made and the final algorithms are presented. CONCLUSION: Testing of the tool with users in Pakistan suggests that the tool facilitates discussion and aids decision making. However, testing in other countries is needed to determine whether these results can be replicated and to identify how the tool can be adapted to meet country specific needs.

Linkages between public and non-government sectors in healthcare: A case study from Uttar Pradesh, India.

Effective utilisation of collaborative non-governmental organisation (NGO)-public health system linkages in pluralistic health systems of developing countries can substantially improve equity and quality of services. This study explores level and types of linkages between public health sector and NGOs in Uttar Pradesh (UP), an underprivileged state of India, using a social science model for the first time. It also identifies gaps and challenges for effective linkage. Two NGOs were selected as case studies. Data collection included semi-structured in-depth interviews with senior staff and review of records and reporting formats. Formal linkages of NGOs with the public health system related to registration, participation in district level meetings, workforce linkages and sharing information on government-supported programmes. Challenges included limited data sharing, participation in planning and limited monitoring of regulatory compliances. Linkage between public health system and NGOs in UP was moderate, marked by frequent interaction and some reciprocity in information and resource flows, but weak participation in policy and planning. The type of linkage could be described as 'complementarity', entailing information and resource sharing but not joint action. Stronger linkage is required for sustained and systematic collaboration, with joint planning, implementation and evaluation.

An epidemiological study of urban and rural children in Pakistan: examining the relationship between delayed psychomotor development, low birth weight and postnatal growth failure.

BACKGROUND: Low birth weight is known to be associated with postnatal growth failure. It is not yet established that both conditions are determinants of psychomotor development. The study investigated whether or not low birth weight leads to delayed psychomotor development of a child, and whether it can be mitigated by adequate postnatal growth. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in 2002 in 15 rural and 11 urban communities of Sindh province, Pakistan. Assessment of 1234 children less than 3 years of age included Bayley's Scale of Infant Development II, socioeconomic questionnaire and anthropometry; WHO standards were used to calculate z-scores of height-for-age, weight-for-height and weight-for-age. The underlying study hypotheses were tested through multiple regression modelling. RESULTS: Out of 1219 children, 283 (23.2%) had delayed psychomotor development and 639 (52.4%) were undernourished according to the composite index of anthropometric failure. Strong negative associations with the psychomotor development index were detected between stunting and being underweight, with a larger magnitude of effect for stunting (p<0.001). The strong relationship persisted even when the analysis was restricted to non-malnourished children. The psychomotor index increased by 2.07 points with every unit increase in height-for-age z-score. CONCLUSIONS: The relationship between low birth weight and psychomotor development appears to be mediated largely by postnatal growth and nutritional status. This association suggests that among undernourished children there is significant likelihood of a group that is developmentally delayed. It is important to emphasize developmental needs in programmes that target underprivileged children.

Disposable clean delivery kits and prevention of neonatal tetanus in the presence of skilled birth attendants.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether the use of disposable clean delivery kits (CDKs) is effective in reducing neonatal tetanus (NNT) infection, regardless of the skills of birth attendants in resource-poor settings. METHODS: A secondary analysis was conducted on data from a matched case-control study in Karachi, Pakistan, involving 140 NNT cases and 280 controls between 1998 and 2001. Conditional logistic regression was performed to assess the independent effect on NNT of CDKs and skilled birth attendants (SBAs). RESULTS: After adjustment for socioeconomic factors, both CDKs (adjusted matched odds ratio [mOR] 2.0; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.3-3.1) and SBAs (adjusted mOR 1.7; 95% CI, 1.1-2.7) were independently associated with NNT. The association with CDKs remained significant when additionally adjusted for SBAs (mOR 2.0; 95% CI, 1.0-3.9; P=0.05). The population attributable risk for lack of CDK use was 24% in the study setting. CONCLUSION: In the context of resource-poor settings in low-income countries with poor coverage of tetanus toxoid immunization, the use of CDKs seems to be an effective strategy for reducing NNT infection, irrespective of the skill levels of birth attendants. Approximately one-quarter of NNT cases could be prevented in low-income populations with the use of CDKs.

Are birth kits a good idea? A systematic review of the evidence.

OBJECTIVE: to identify the current state of knowledge regarding the effects of births kits on clean birth practices and on newborn and maternal outcomes. DESIGN: the scoping review was informed through a systematic literature review; a call for information distributed to experts in maternal and child health, relevant research centres and specialist libraries; and a search of the web sites of groups working in the area of maternal and child health. Data were synthesised to produce a summary of the state of knowledge regarding birth kits. Meta-analysis was not attempted because of the varied study designs and the heterogeneous nature of the interventions. PARTICIPANTS: births kit use was identified in 51 low resource countries, but evaluations were scarce, with only nine studies reporting effects of intervention packages including births kits. FINDINGS: the quality of evidence for inferring causality was weak, with only one randomised controlled trial. In two studies, births kit use along with co-interventions resulted in a statistically significant increase in the likelihood of the attendant having clean hands. The impact on other aspects of cleanliness was less clear. Intervention packages which include births kits were associated with reduced newborn mortality (three studies), omphalitis (four studies), and puerperal sepsis (three studies). The one study that considered maternal mortality was not large enough to estimate relative reduction with much precision. None of the studies reported any adverse effects; however, none explicitly described looking for negative consequences. CONCLUSION: providing birth kits to facilitate clean practices seems commonsense, but there is no evidence to indicate effects, positive or negative, separate from those achieved by a broader intervention package. More robust methods and knowledge systems are needed to understand the contextual factors and share relevant implementation lessons.

Lessons regarding the use of birth kits in low resource countries.

OBJECTIVE: To synthesise implementation lessons regarding birth kits in terms of the context, the user, requirements for use and the logistics of supplying kits. DESIGN: The scoping review was informed through a systematic literature review; a call for information distributed to experts in maternal and child health, relevant research centres and specialist libraries; a search of the web sites of groups working in the area of maternal and child health; and data extraction from DHS surveys. Data synthesis involved the production of a simple descriptive summary of the state of knowledge regarding birth kits. PARTICIPANTS: The 28 articles included in the review described a total of 21 birth kits used in 40 different countries and in many cases the kits were part of a package of interventions. FINDINGS: Although birth kits are available in more than 50 low resource countries, evidence regarding implementation is limited. Levels of birth kit use vary considerably (8-99%); with higher levels being reported where birth kits are distributed free as part of a research programme. Identifying the user of the birth kit was difficult in most reports and the evidence regarding training requirements for birth kit use was conflicting. Limited information exists regarding facilitators and barriers to birth kit use, and how birth kits fit within the wider service delivery of maternal and child health. CONCLUSION: Despite widespread use of birth kits, implementation lessons are hard to identify. The fact that birth kits are predominantly used in non-facility settings, and probably by non-skilled attendants, poses further challenges in synthesising the evidence. It would seem logical that government run programmes would increase utlisation rates; however in these countries national level data are not yet available. Such data are crucial to identifying how women obtain and use birth kits. The importance of context cannot be over emphasised, and better descriptive methods are needed to capture contextual factors that may impact on the implementation process. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Birth kits are a promising technology to achieve MDG 5, however further research is needed before making recommendations to scale up mother held birth kits or to expand kit contents.