Consented maternal care and associated factors among mothers who gave birth at public health institutions in South Wollo Zone, Amhara region, Ethiopia 2022

Introduction

Informed consent in healthcare services is a legal, ethical, and professional requirement on the part of all treating health providers and providing person-centered care. The methods of requesting consent during childbirth have not been extensively studied. In Ethiopia, there is not at all a single study done.

Objective

The purpose of this study is to determine associated factors among mothers who gave birth at health institutions in the South Wollo Zone, Amhara region, Ethiopia in 2022.

Methods

Mothers who gave birth at South Wollo Zone public health institutions, from 01 March to 30 April 2022 participated in a multi-center institutional-based cross-sectional study design. Systematic random sampling was used to select 423 study participants. A validated questionnaire was used for data collection, and the data were collected through face-to-face interviews. Data were entered into Epi-Data version 4.6 and exported to SPSS version 23 for analysis. A multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to identify factors associated with the outcome variable. The level of significance was determined using an adjusted odds ratio with a 95% confidence interval.

Result

The study had 416 participants in total, with a response rate of 98.3%. Out of the 416 respondents interviewed, 67.1% of the women received consented care. The age group of 30-34, complications during childbirth, intended pregnancy, merchant, and primary and referral hospital were significantly associated with consented care.

Conclusion

The level of non-consented care during delivery was high compared with other literature reflecting substantial mistreatment. Therefore, stakeholders should strengthen monitoring and assessment systems to prevent abuse, and further study is required to look for practical ways to make improvements. Key elements of consented care have also been included in Basic and Emergency Obstetric Care training sessions and given to health providers.

Breastfeeding Practice of Children Age Less than Two Years in South Wollo Zone, Northeast Ethiopia

BACKGROUND

Suboptimal breastfeeding causes substantial numbers of child morbidity and mortality in Ethiopia. This study was designed to assess suboptimal breastfeeding practice and its associated factors among children age less than two years in South Wollo, northeast Ethiopia.

METHOD

A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 636 women-child pairs. The study participants were selected by a multi sage random sampling technique. Data were collected using a structured interviewer-administered questionnaire, then it was entered into Epi-Data version 3.1, and exported into SPSS version 24.0 for analysis. A Binary Logistic Regression Model with a backward elimination method was used to determine the association of factors and suboptimal breastfeeding practice of babies at a 95% confidence interval.

RESULT

Six hundred and thirty-six participants were included with a response rate of 99.7%. The study showed that 36.3% babies age less than 2 years were received suboptimal breastfeeding. Cesarean delivery [AOR: 8.81; 95% CI (4.92-15.77)], lack of breastfeeding counseling [AOR: 3.22; 95% CI (1.93-5.36)], maternal feeding less than 5 times/day during breastfeeding [AOR: 2.01; 95% CI (1.20-3.34)], child health problems [AOR: 3.57; 95%CI (2.17-5.85)], and babies age less than 6 months [AOR:1.92; 95%CI (1.24-2.97)] were positively associated with suboptimal breastfeeding practice.

CONCLUSION

Suboptimal breastfeeding practice is highly prevalent in Ethiopia. Health service-related and socio-cultural factors were associated with the high prevalence of suboptimal breastfeeding practice. Emphasis should be given to the breastfeeding practices of children age less than years in Ethiopia. Moreover, counseling regarding the importance of breastfeeding practices should be strengthened.

Health Centers' Preparedness for Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic in South Wollo Zone, Ethiopia, 2020

BACKGROUND

COVID-19 is a highly contagious respiratory disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus two (SARS-CoV-2). Preparedness of health facilities to prevent the spread of COVID-19 is an immediate priority to safeguard patients and healthcare workers and to reduce the spread of the pandemic. However, the preparedness of health centers in south Wollo zone is unknown.

OBJECTIVE

To assess the preparedness of Health Centers for COVID-19 in South Wollo Zone, Ethiopia, 2020.

METHODS

Health facility-based cross-sectional study was conducted among forty-six Health Centers in South Wollo zone in August 2020. The sampled health centers were selected by lottery method. The data was collected from the manager of the health centers using a pretested interviewer-administered and observational checklist. The ReadyScore criteria was used to classify the level of preparedness, in which health centers with a score of >80%, 40-80%, and <40% were considered as better prepared, work to do, and not ready, respectively.

RESULTS

In this study, the median score of health centers preparedness for COVID-19 was 70.3 ± 21.6 interquartile ranges with a minimum score of 40.5 and the maximum score of 83.8. Only 12 (26.1%) of the health centers were prepared for the COVID-19 pandemic. The majority (73.9%) of the health centers were found within the group of "work to do". Conversely, none of the health centers were found within the "not ready" or below group.

CONCLUSION

This study concluded that the preparedness status of the majority of health centers in South Wollo Zone was within the "work to do" group. Therefore, the local government and other concerned bodies should monitor and support health centers to increase their preparedness and to build their capacity.