Association between spouse participation in maternity care, women's access to skilled care and birth outcomes in The Gambia
Haddy Tunkara-Bah, Rachel Mendy, Kebba Jammeh, Jariatou Drammeh-Manneh, Haddy BahBackground/Aims
Involving a woman's spouse in antenatal, intranatal, postnatal and child healthcare services has the potential to reduce delays in seeking health services and improve maternal and child health. This study aimed to determine the association between spouse participation in maternity care, access to care and birth outcomes in The Gambia.
Methods
This descriptive cross-sectional study involved 342 spouses of pregnant women attending antenatal care in three public health facilities in The Gambia. A Researcher-administered questionnaire was used to collect data on participants' involvement in birth preparedness and institutional birth. Chi-squared and multiple logistic regression tests were used to explore associations between participation in maternity care, access to care and birth outcomes.
Results
Participants with low participation in birth care were less likely to report that their wives attended four or more antenatal care appointments than those with high participation (odds ratio=0.31; P =0.01). Significant predictors of giving birth in a health facility were spouse participation in birth preparedness (odds ratio=3.09; P =0.02) and their participation in birth care (odds ratio=0.54; P =0.04). However, spouse participation in maternity care was not significantly associated with changes in birth outcomes.
Conclusions
Spouse participation in maternal care was significantly associated with women's access to maternal health services but had no significant association with their birth outcomes in The Gambia.
Implications for practice
Spouses should be encouraged to participate in their partners' maternity care, alongside improving the quality of healthcare services provided in The Gambia. This will promote increased access to health services and births in health facilities.