📄 Abstract
From the case study of Mamfe, this research has been tailored to highlight and examine the influence of traditional patterns of antenatal care on maternal morbidity and mortality in rural Cameroon. The country is one of the underachievers of the MDGs with strong socio-cultural attachment and a consequential high reliance on traditional patterns for antenatal care. Understanding the influence of this reliance gives a more complete view of the socio-cultural factor critical towards underlining the underlying determinants of maternal deaths. The rationales behind most traditional antenatal beliefs and practices, some of which have been highlighted in this work, scarcely correspond to the biomedical norms for useful maternal healthcare. They reportedly fulfill more superior and collective purposes that understandably prevail over maternal health. Non-respect for these traditional imperatives puts transgressors at odds with the community. Given their understandable vulnerability during pregnancy, expectant women are therefore predisposed to a higher risk of complications and death. The research was both cross-sectional and exploratory, constructed on a qualitative design. Non-probability purposive sampling was used to constitute a sample size of 140 participants. Research techniques employed included in-depth interviews, FGDs and direct observation. We discovered that expectant women widely attended conventional antenatal consultations but were rigorously constraint to respect and adhere to beliefs and practices for traditional maternal care. As such widespread facility-based deliveries in rural settings heralded as the ideal solution by many does not necessarily limit the influence of the socio-cultural factor on MMR.
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📚 How to Cite:
Ndoh Lawrence Nkwain, Aziamin Asongu Norah, Celestine Arreytta , TRADITION PATTERNS OF ANTENATAL CARE AND MATERNAL HEALTH IN MAMFE: UNDERSTANDING THE SOCIO-CULTURAL FACTOR OF MATERNAL MORTALITY IN RURAL CAMEROON , Volume 7 , Issue 12, december 2021, EPRA International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research (IJMR) , DOI: https://doi.org/10.36713/epra9148