The Determinants of Hospital Delivery among Booked Parturient in a Tertiary Health Facility in South-South Region of Nigeria: Situation Analysis of the Niger Delta University Teaching Hospital

Objective: To determine the hospital delivery rate and identify the associated factors for hospital delivery among booked parturients at the Niger Delta University Teaching Hospital.

To determine the behavioural pattern of participants who delivered in NDUTH during the antenatal period and in labour.

Methodology: This was a descriptive, retrospective cross-sectional study carried out at The Niger Delta University Teaching Hospital (NDUTH), Nigeria. Four hundred and one participants were enlisted for the study.

Results: The hospital delivery rate was 28.9% while the mean antenatal visits were 6.05 (S.D 3.36). Factors related to hospital delivery: Age-the youngest group, for instance, are more unlikely to deliver in a hospital (OR =0.09, 95% CI 0.01-0.067, P = 0.019). Education- The least educated were unlikely to deliver in hospital, (OR = 0.04, 95% CI 0.1-0.34, P =0.003) while those with secondary education were 34 times more likely to deliver in hospital (OR = 0.34; 95% CI 0.2-0.57, P = 0.000) compared those with tertiary education as the reference group. Antenatal care- the participants with the least ANC sessions, have the lowest odd of hospital delivery (OR = 0,19, 95 % CI 0.08-0.44, P = 0.000). Other participants characteristics like religion, marital status, occupation and parity were found not to be statistically significant in the prediction of hospital delivery. The mean antenatal visits by participants was 6.05 (S.D3.36), gestational age at booking was 23.08 (S.D 6.50), 26% visited TBAs. Prelabour rupture of fetal membranes at home- 37.9% (n=116), while 75% (n=44) of those who ruptured membranes at home presented within 12 hours to the hospital. The degree of cervical dilatation on admission to hospital: 42.2% in latent phase and 33.6% in the early phase of active lour.

Conclusion: This study concluded that antenatal care attendance impacted on the prospect of hospital delivery. Encouraging antenatal care uptake and attendance will improve the participants access to their physicians throughout pregnancy, delivery by skilled providers with the improvement of women’s health at the end of pregnancy.