Abstract

The majority of deaths of women and infants during pregnancy and childbirth occur in Africa. Although many pregnant women seek antenatal care, in Ghana they do not all continue to seek facility-based care for childbirth. Complications that lead to mortality often occur around childbirth and these are not always possible to predict during antenatal care. This makes facility-based childbirth imperative for reduction in maternal and infant mortality. Satisfaction with childbirth care is recognized as a key influence for future utilization of the facility for pregnant women. This paper explores what women in Kumasi, Ghana perceive as satisfactory facility-based childbirth care. An exploratory qualitative study that enrolled 56 consenting women attending either antenatal or postnatal care in four public health facilities in Kumasi was conducted. Data were collected using in-depth individual interviews which were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim. Content analyses led to the emergence of themes that reflected participants’ conceptualizations of satisfaction with facility-based childbirth care. Four themes emerged related to women’s satisfaction with facility-based childbirth, namely: (i) receiving courteous and dignified care; (ii) having a consistent caregiver during childbirth; (iii) experiencing a positive birth outcome; and (iv) having a skillful care practitioner. Nurses and midwives should update their clinical skills and also be trained to provide patient-centered care to meet the expectations of women during childbirth in Kumasi, Ghana.

Key words: Satisfaction, childbirth, facility-based childbirth, Kumasi-Ghana.