Skilled Birth Attendance Among Women in Hard to Reach Island Fishing Communities on Lake Victoria; A Cross- Sectional Survey

Abstract
Maternal deaths continue to be a major challenge for maternal health in Uganda. Maternal deaths are at 336 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births, especially in rural hard to reach communities. Skilled birth attendance is key to preventing most maternal deaths. Rural fishing communities on Lake Victoria, Uganda could among communities with poor maternal health outcomes. We evaluated the extent of, and factors associated with skilled births attendance by women in fishing communities along Lake Victoria, Uganda at the most recent childbirth. Methods: A cross sectional survey among 486 consenting women aged 15-49 years, who were pregnant or had a birth or abortion in the past 6 months was conducted in 6 island fishing communities of Kalangala district, Uganda, during January-May 2018. Interviewer administered questionnaires were used to collect data on sociodemographics, antenatal care and skilled birth attendance during the most recent childbirth. Regression modeling was used to determine factors associated with women’s skilled birth attendance among 450 women with a previous childbirth. Results: Majority of women had a skilled delivery during the most recent birth [86.9%,(391/450)], with less than two in five skilled births being at the islands [34.0%, (133/391)]. Women who received any one of the seven assessed ANC components were twice as likely to have had a skilled childbirth as those who didn’t receive any ANC components (AOR=2.1; 95% CI:1.1-4.0). Joint participant and partner health decisions, reporting no prior pregnancy loss, fewer than two lifetime births and none fishing related partner occupation were also associated with a likelihood of having had a skilled birth during the most recent delivery. Conclusion: Skilled births attendance is still low in these island fishing communities. Tailored interventions to expand provision of components of ANC may improve women’s skilled birth attendance in these islands.
Description
Keywords
Skilled births, Attendance, Island, Fishing, Community, Women, Uganda
Citation
Ssetaala, A., Nanyonjo, G., Okech, B., Chinyenze, K., Price, M. A., Kiwanuka, N., & Degomme, O. (2020). Skilled Birth Attendance Among Women in Hard to Reach Island Fishing Communities on Lake Victoria; A Cross-Sectional Survey. https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-65481/v1