BACKGROUND To examine whether exposure to group antenatal care increased women's health literacy by improving their ability to interpret and utilize health messages compared to women who received standard, individual antenatal care in Ghana. METHODS We used a prospective cohort design. The setting was a busy urban district hospital in Kumasi, the second most populous city in Ghana. Pregnant w...

BACKGROUND Due to persistent significantly poorer Aboriginal perinatal outcomes, the Women's and Newborns' Health Network, Western Australian Department of Health, required a comprehensive appraisal of antenatal services available to Aboriginal women as a starting point for future service delivery modelling. A services audit was conducted to ascertain the usage frequency and characteristics of ...

BACKGROUND In Tanzania, more than 90% of all pregnant women attend antenatal care at least once and approximately 62% four times or more, yet less than five in ten receive skilled delivery care at available health units. We conducted a qualitative study in Ngorongoro district, Northern Tanzania, in order to gain an understanding of the health systems and socio-cultural factors underlying this d...

Introduction: The new focused antenatal care model recognizes that every pregnant woman is at risk for complications and four antenatal care visits are recommended for most pregnant women; the first one being early in the first trimester. When pregnant women attend antenatal care late they miss the cares being provided in the first 16 weeks. Therefore it is important to assess timing of first a...

BACKGROUND Many studies show that the vast majority of Nigerian women register for antenatal care late and that the determinants may differ from those found in developed countries. OBJECTIVE To determine the reasons for late booking among women presenting at the antenatal clinic of a major tertiary hospital in the Niger Delta, Nigeria DESIGN A cross sectional questionnaire based survey. S...

Background Evidence exists that selective antenatal maternal screening tests contribute to the reduction of maternal morbidity and mortality. However, data are lacking on coverage with the complete set of recommended tests. The study aimed to identify barriers to uptake of the complete set of tests recommended by the Ministry of Health in Senegal. Methods Data were collected in communities, a...

Methods: Data was collected from an analysis of antenatal and medical records of women who attended antenatal care and delivered at the regional hospital between January and December 2007. Only pregnant women who attended antenatal care at this regional hospital and delivered in its facilities were selected for the study. Patients eligible for review were identified using the labour ward delive...

BACKGROUND The benefits of maternal health care to maternal and neonatal health outcomes have been well documented. Antenatal care attendance, institutional delivery and skilled attendance at delivery all help to improve maternal and neonatal health. However, use of maternal health services is still very low in developing countries with high maternal mortality including Ethiopia. This study exa...