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PI

Team Members

*indicates student or postdoctoral fellow

  • Jessica Dutton*
  • Stephanie Gormley*

Respectful maternal care and the barriers to quality of care

The study seeks to better understand the context of respectful maternal care and the barriers to quality of care throughout the continuum of maternal health care in South Africa.

Project period

01 April 2019 – 31 March 2022

Project Summary

In the MDG era, South Africa partially improved maternal health by increasing antenatal care coverage and the proportion of births attended by skilled health personnel. The goal to reduce the maternal mortality ratio (MMR) to 37.5 per 100,000 live births (or less) was not met, however. The current MMR is approximately 147 per 100,000 live births, which is still far from the current SDG target which is to reduce MMR to 70 per 100,000 live births or less. Research shows that 60% of maternal deaths in South Africa are preventable through improved care. If preventable maternal deaths were realised, the country could reach the SDG target.

The aim of this research was to better understand the context of respectful maternal care and the barriers to quality of care throughout the continuum of maternal health care in South Africa. It aims to synthesise existing evidence about respectful maternal care; to explore the drivers of disrespect and abuse from the perspective of providers in urban Western Cape (especially nurses and midwives); and to understand the health system and structural factors that contribute to norms of midwifery practice and barriers to quality of care in urban Western Cape.

The ultimate purpose of the research is to develop a conceptual framework for the analysis of barriers to quality of care and drivers of disrespect and abuse, in order to inform the implementation of new maternal health guidelines. Data collection for the project is completed and analysis is underway.

Funders
  • South African Medical Research Council
Partners and Collaborators
  • Western Cape Government: Department of Health