Is poor maternal mortality index in Nigeria a problem of care utilization? A case study of Anambra State

Maternal mortality in Nigeria is unacceptably high. Some of the reasons may include poor socioeconomic development, weak health care system, low socioeconomic status of women and socio-cultural barriers to care utilization. A cross sectional study was carried out to assess the use of maternal services in Anambra State. A multi stage sampling technique was used to select 800 nursing mothers from the State who were interviewed on the use of maternal services during their last pregnancy. Over 95% of the subjects had formal education. Almost all the subjects (99.7%) attended antenatal clinics during their last pregnancy with 92.3% (646) of them making 4 or more visits before delivery. Over 97% (680) of the deliveries took place in formal health facilities. Obviously, the women in the study population utilize maternal health services. The problem of maternal mortality in the country may not necessarily lie with utilization but with the quality of services.