| Effects of Spatial Location and Household Wealth on the Utilisation of Skilled Birth Attendants at Delivery among Women in Rural Ghana |
| Authors: |
Hubert Amu, and Dickson Kwamena Sekyi |
| Source: |
Ghana Journal of Geography, 10(1): 58–77; DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/gjg.v10i1.4 |
| Topic(s): |
Delivery care
Maternal health
Rural-urban differentials
Wealth Index
Women's health
|
| Country: |
Africa
Ghana
|
| Published: |
JAN 2018 |
| Abstract: |
Skilled attendance during delivery has been identified as a panacea to the amelioration of
maternal and new-born mortality, but utilisation is lower in rural areas than in urban areas of
Ghana. The study examined the role of spatial location and household wealth in the use of
skilled birth attendants at delivery among rural women in Ghana. The paper made use of data
from the 2014 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey. Women from rural areas who had
given birth within five years prior to the survey were included in the analysis. Frequency,
percentage, Chi-square tests as well as binary and multivariate logistic regression estimation
techniques were used to analyse the data. The probability of utilising skilled birth attendants
at delivery increased by household wealth. Rural women in coastal Ghana also had the least
probability of utilising skilled assistance at delivery. There are spatial differences in the use of
skilled birth attendants at delivery among women in rural Ghana with those in the coastal
areas having the highest probability of non-utilisation. A perpetuation of the current spatial
and wealth variations in the utilisation of skilled birth attendants at delivery among women in
the rural parts of the country implies that Ghana may not be able to meet her Sustainable
Development Goal target of reducing the maternal mortality ratio to less than 70 maternal
deaths per 100,000 live births by the year 2030. The study, therefore, underscores the need for
geographical and income vulnerability considerations in identifying rural populations for
special skilled delivery care interventions in improving maternal health outcomes.
Keywords: skilled birth attendants, spatial location, household wealth, delivery, pregnancy,
Ghana
1Department |
| Web: |
https://www.ajol.info/index.php/gjg/article/download/170406/159834 |
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