Asian Journal of Pregnancy and Childbirth

Introduction: Ghana has recorded improved access to skilled care during pregnancy (4+ visits) 89% and labour 78%, yet maternal mortality is 310 per 100 000 live births. This research was conducted to identify the socio-demographic and obstetric characteristics of women with obstetric complications in a tertiary health facility in northern Ghana to gain sight to reduce maternal deaths.

Materials and Methods: This study was a cross-sectional quantitative retrospective study. We collected data from 384 women using a structured questionnaire and analysed it using SPSS version 20.0. Inferences were made using cross-tabulations with corresponding significance set at P= .05. 

Results: This study revealed that, the typical woman with obstetric complication is 20-35 years old, mean age 27.7 and standard deviation of 6.2; married to a salaried worker; Dagomba by tribe; no formal education; petty trader; earn below the minimum wage of Ghana ($ 2.07); Moslem; resides in an urban setting; pregnant and delivering for the first time; gestational age of 37-42 weeks at labour and birth spacing of 2-3 years. Cross-tabulations revealed associations between three socio-demographic and four obstetric characteristic all with large effects sizes as follows; X² (3, N = 69) = 13.50, P = .004; X² (65, N = 67) =1.11, P = .000; X² (2, N = 69) = 9.17, P = .010; X² (12, N = 68) = 26.1, P = .010; X² (3, N = 384) = 17.15, P= .001; X² (4, N = 69) = 19.8, P = .001; X² (65, N = 65) = 1.12, P = .000; X² (1, N = ) = 72.9, P = .000 respectively.

Conclusion: Obstetric complications are universal; improving poor outcomes in the study setting will take identifying and filling gaps in the skill needs of maternal health care workers and addressing health facility challenges.