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Background: Skilled delivery care utilization in Ethiopia is still very low compared with the goal set by the global community for countries with the highest maternal mortality. As a result, the country is overburdened with high maternal morbidity and mortality. We aimed to explore the predisposing, enabling, and need factors associated with skilled delivery care utilization among reproductive-aged women in Kersa district, eastern Ethiopia. Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted with a total of 1294 women. The participants were selected using systematic sampling techniques. An interviewer-administered structured questionnaire aided by an electronic survey tool was used to collect data. Univariate analyses were conducted to describe the study sample. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were carried out to elicit the association of predisposing, enabling, and need factors associated with skilled delivery care utilization. Separate multivariate models were fitted for primiparous and multiparous women categories. Odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals were used to assess statistical significance. Results: More than a quarter (30.8%) of the women surveyed used skilled delivery care for their most recent birth. Significant predisposing factors were as follows: presence of educated family member; receiving education on maternal health; previous use of skilled delivery care; and best friend’s use of maternal care. Place of residence was the enabling factor that predicted skilled delivery care use. Antenatal care attendance and pregnancy intention were significant need factors associated with skilled delivery care utilization. Conclusion: The findings of the study highlight the need for a concerted effort to establish community-based peer education programs; improve access to family planning services (to reduce unintended pregnancies); increase antenatal care uptake; and facilitate access to skilled delivery care in rural areas.
The study was conducted in Kersa district, East Hararghe zone, Oromia region, eastern Ethiopia. Kersa town, the capital of the district, is located 486 kms from Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia. The total population of the district was 205,628, as of the 2014 population projection for Ethiopia. In the district, there were 38 kebeles (the lowest administrative unit in Ethiopia consisting of 5000 people or 1000 households) or so-called subdistricts. From the 38 kebeles, three were urban, and 35 were rural [29, 30], and 24 kebeles were under the Health and Demographic Surveillance System (HDSS). There were seven health centres, 34 health posts and eight private pharmacies in the district. The health centres routinely provide the recommended packages of ANC, skilled delivery care and postnatal care. Based on a recent report from the district health office, the health coverage of the district was 80% [31]. The study was conducted from June to August 2017. A community-based cross-sectional study was implemented. The population for the study were all reproductive-aged women living in the Kersa district. Only women who had at least one birth within the previous 3 years, had lived in the district for more than 6 months, and had delivered their most recent baby after 28 weeks of gestation were included. Women who were critically ill, and physically or mentally disabled were excluded from the study. The total sample size for the study (n = 1320) was primarily calculated for a study on maternal health service utilization and associated factors in Kersa district, eastern Ethiopia using different parameters. Twenty-five percent of the total 38 kebeles in the district (i.e. 10 kebeles) were included in the study to ensure optimum sample representation. Of the included kebeles, two were urban, and eight were rural. The study district was first stratified into urban and rural kebeles, and these were further classified into HDSS and non-HDSS kebeles. A proportional number of study kebeles were then selected from each stratum using simple random sampling technique. To select the individual study participants, first, the number of households having at least one eligible woman was determined in each kebele using the Health Extension Workers’ logbook. Since the number of households with eligible women varied among the included kebeles, the total sample size of the study was proportionally allocated to each selected kebele. The total calculated sample size was then proportionally allocated to each kebele based on the determined number of households with eligible women for each kebele. The study participants were drawn from the list of households having eligible women using systematic random sampling techniques. The participants were recruited at the time of the survey based on a pre-identified list of randomly selected households. In the event of two or more eligible women being in the same household, only one woman was randomly selected and interviewed to avoid intra-household correlations. Skilled delivery care utilization: women who have received delivery care from a skilled health worker (doctors, midwives/nurses, or health officers) at the time of labour and parturition of their most recent baby irrespective of the setting in which the birth occurs. A supervisor and eight enumerators were involved in the data collection process. The data were collected using a structured questionnaire administered by face to face interviews at the participant’s home. The survey questionnaire was adapted from relevant literature [32–36] that addresses maternal health service utilization. Variables were measured using closed ended questions and participants were queried about basic socio-demographic variables; reproductive histories; primary health care services; health promotion and women’s autonomy; pregnancy status and maternal health service utilization; social network; and, social support. Using the translation-back-translation method, first, the original English version of the questionnaire was translated to the local language, Oromiffa. The Oromiffa version was then translated back into English by a translator who was not involved in the first phase of the translation process. The interviews were conducted using the local language. An off-line mode of digital data collection software (Survey Gizmo) installed on iPads was used to collect the responses. Kersa HDSS resident enumerators fluent in the local language conducted the individual interviews. A field supervisor and the lead author closely monitored the data collection at the field level. Pre-testing of the tool was carried out on 5% of the sample of women in the adjacent district. Necessary refinements were made on the tool based on the pre-test findings. We recruited and employed experienced local data collectors and a supervisor. Intensive training was provided to the data collectors and the supervisor on the objectives of the study, methodology, and sampling procedures and how to use the iPads for collecting responses. The use of iPads during data collection prevented the potential for incomplete responses and missing values. At the field level, 10% of the interviewed women were re-interviewed by the supervisor to check the validity of the responses. During the quality check, if the supervisor found any invalid response on the Survey Gizmo, the interviewer revisited the house and interviewed the woman again. The enumerators uploaded the responses daily to the online version of Survey Gizmo. The responses were then double-checked daily by the lead author for any inconsistencies. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 23 software package. We conducted the transformation of some of the variables to allow for undertaking a meaningful analysis. For the transformation, we used either recoding (through collapsing categories of some nominal variables and categorizing continuous variables) or creating new variables from the existing ones using statistical computation techniques. Univariate analyses were conducted to descriptively summarize the characteristics of the sample population. The existence of multicollinearity between covariates was determined using a Variance Inflation Factor value less than five. The multivariate model fitness was verified using Hosmer-Lemeshow test. Bivariate logistic regression analysis was carried out to compare utilization of skilled delivery care among different groups using p-value. Variables that showed statistical association at a p-value less than 0.05 from each set of variables in the bivariate analysis were entered into the final full multivariate logistic regression model. Two multivariate logistic regression models were fitted (Model 1 for multiparous women and Model 2 for primiparas women) to identify factors associated with skilled delivery care utilization. The measure of association using Adjusted Odds Ratios (AOR) with Confidence Intervals (CI) was used to assess the direction as well as the strength of the association between the explanatory and the outcome variables. The study was conducted after securing ethical approval from the Human Research Ethics Committee of the University of Newcastle, Australia and the Institutional Health Research Ethics Review Committee of College of Health and Medical Sciences, Haramaya University, Ethiopia. Informed verbal consent was obtained from each respondent before commencing the interviews. The confidentiality of the respondents was ensured by avoiding personal identification details. During house-to-house interviews, the participants’ privacy was maintained by carrying out the interviews in a separate place in their residence where auditory and visual privacy was assured.
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