Perception and determinants of knowledge and practice of birth preparedness and complication readiness in a rural community

Background: Maternal deaths are thought to occur due to delay in making appropriate decision to seek care, delay in reaching appropriate health facility, and delay in the provision of care in the health facility. Birth preparedness and complication readiness (BP/CR) ensure that women access care when needed. Objective: This study aimed to assess the knowledge, perception, and practice of BP and CR in a rural community of Sokoto State. Materials and Methods: This was a community-based cross-sectional study; a total of 198 women who were either pregnant or had their last child birth within 2 years of the study were recruited using a systematic sampling method. Result: The study showed that 185 (93.4%) had poor knowledge and 162 (81.2%) had a poor practice of BP/CR although 159 (80.3%) had good perception. Only husband's education was a significant predictor of knowledge of BP/CR, while knowledge of BP/CR and husband's occupation were the predictors of practice. Conclusion: The study revealed that women in the study area had poor knowledge and practice of BP/CR although perception was good. Education of the husband was the only significant predictor of knowledge of BP/CR, while husband's occupation and respondent's knowledge of BP/CR were the significant predictors of practice. Efforts should be made to improve the educational status of the community since education is a predictor of knowledge.