Birth Preparedness and Complication Readiness Among Pregnant Women: A Facility-Based Cross-Sectional Study

Birth preparedness and complication readiness have the goal of reducing maternal and neonatal mortality. This concept requires pregnant women to seek health care without delay in case of obstetric complications and delivery. This study determined the practices and factors associated with birth preparedness and complication readiness among pregnant women in the Cape Coast Metropolis, Ghana.

A facility-based cross-sectional design was employed among 384 participants, collecting data using a self-administered questionnaire and analyzing them using Stata (Version 16) at the 0.05 significance level and 95% CI.

The practice of birth preparedness and complication readiness was 53.4%, and single pregnant women were more likely to practice birth preparedness and complication readiness (AOR=2.19; 95% CI=1.13, 3.45; p=0.020). Respondents whose husbands had completed the tertiary education level were more likely to practice birth preparedness and complication readiness (AOR=1.15; 95% CI=0.05, 1.46; p<0.001). Pregnant women who did not have enough money to cater for expenses, those who had no means of transportation to the health facility, those who did not have someone to accompany them to the health facility, those who did not receive advice from a birth attendant regarding their pregnancy, and those who did not have enough food at home to cater for the household were less likely to practice birth preparedness and complication readiness (all: p<0.05).

Health promotion programs to increase the practice of birth preparedness and complication readiness should target all women, particularly those with limited social and financial support and families with no or basic education.