2013 Volume 27 Issue 2 Pages 226-236
Objectives
To ascertain the state of delivery care needs of women in rural Bangladesh in order to gain insight into approaches involving skilled birth attendants (SBA).
Subjects and methods
Subjects were 9 women who resided in the rural areas of the Bogra District and who had delivered within the last year. The study design was a descriptive study involving qualitative inductive analysis. Field notes from field work, data from semi-structured interviews with subjects, and data from unstructured interviews with key informants were collected. Data from semi-structured interviews were analyzed using qualitative induction. Interviews were conducted by researchers directly in Bengali (the official language) without the use of an interpreter.
Results
Three core categories of delivery care needs of women in rural Bangladesh were identified: "support to give birth at home," "support to safely deliver a healthy child," and "support to give birth with relatives present." In addition, care needs were found to be heavily affected by religion and customs. Based on the women's descriptions, SBA were accepted favorably as a provider of information during pregnancy and a provider of aid in the event of problems but were not considered necessary during a normal delivery. During a normal delivery, women preferred a traditional birth attendant, primarily in the form of a relative.
Conclusion
For SBA in rural Bangladesh to be chosen as birth attendants, 3 criteria must be met. First, SBA must be better able to make assessments, make decisions, and respond to obstetric emergencies. In addition to being skilled, SBA must consider the social and cultural backgrounds of villagers they will be attending. Finally, SBA must respect the needs of women and their families and support their decision-making.
