Birth preparedness and complication readiness among postnatal mothers in Malawi

Alliet Kupatsa Botha, Alfred Maluwa, Mercy Pindani, Kaye Bultemeier

Georgetown University, Washington DC, USA.
Office of the Dean of Faculty, Kamuzu College of Nursing, Lilongwe, Malawi.
Research Directorate, Kamuzu College of Nursing, Lilongwe, Malawi;.
Salima District Hospital, Salima, Malawi.

DOI: 10.4236/health.2013.59202                

Abstract

This study was conducted to assess birth preparedness and complication readiness among postnatal mothers at Khombedza Health Centre in Salima District, Malawi. The study design was descriptive cross sectional and utilized qualitative data collection and analysis method on a random sample of 15 postnatal mothers. A semi structured questionnaire was used to assess birth preparedness and complication readiness among the postnatal mothers during their most recent pregnancy and child birth. The findings indicate that overall, all the mothers had attended antenatal care and were aware of the importance of seeking health facility delivery. The mothers were also conversant with the items to bring with them during labour and delivery. Results further show that the participants had some knowledge of danger signs during postpartum and also for the new born baby but had limited knowledge of danger signs during antenatal, labour and delivery. Although the mothers had planned to deliver at the hospital, they did not save money for transport. There is therefore a need to strengthen antenatal care education on birth preparedness and complication readiness. Such knowledge would assist pregnant mothers to identify danger signs during antenatal, labour and delivery and therefore seek emergency obstetric care on time to minimize maternal and neonatal mortalities.

Keywords

Birth Preparedness; Complication Readiness; Danger Signs of Pregnancy; Antenatal Care Education; Postpartum Period; Maternal and Neonatal Mortalities

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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