Prevalence and factors associated with Skilled Birth Attendants use among post-partum women in Arusha Tanzania

ABSTRACT Introduction Death related to pregnancy complications and delivery remains a public health problem in developing countries including Tanzania where majority of women and newborns die each year due to preventable causes. Delivery with a skilled birth attendant (SBA) is an important intervention to avert maternal and newborn mortality. This study aimed to determine factors influencing skilled birth attendant’s use among postpartum women in Arusha city and Arumeru district in Arusha region. Methods This was a cross-sectional study which was conducted from April to July 2017. The study utilized secondary data from the parent study which was conducted in Arusha city and Arumeru district in Arusha region. The parent study aimed to assess knowledge of danger signs in obstetric complication, birth preparedness and utilization of skilled birth attendants among post-partum women in urban and rural Arusha region in Tanzania. Data analysis was performed using SPSS version 20. Chi square statistics was used to determine the association between a set of independent variables and utilization of skilled birth attendance in bivariate analysis. Odds ratios with 95% confidence interval for factors influencing skilled birth attendants’ use were estimated in a multivariable logistic regression models. A p-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results A total of 1218 post-partum women were studied. Their mean age was 26.2 (SD 5.9) years. Of these, 1020 used skilled birth attendants during delivery; this corresponds to prevalence of 83.7%. Mother’s education level, area of residence, distance from health facility, frequency of antenatal care and parity were significantly associated utilization of skilled birth attendants during delivery. Conclusion The prevalence of skilled birth attendants’ use among postpartum women is high in the studied population compared to the national level. Strategies to create community awareness on important of skilled birth attendants’ use will increase its uptake and my help to reduce both mother and child mortality.