Association of Health Facility Delivery and Risk of Infant Mortality in Nigeria

Infant mortality (IM) incidence in health facility systems during or after infant delivery is substantially high in Nigeria. In this quantitative, cross-sectional study, the effects of skill birth attendants (SBAs), prenatal care, and providers of prenatal care on IM in health facility delivery centers were examined. The Mosley and Chen theoretical framework informed this study and was used to explain the relationship between SBAs, prenatal care, and providers of prenatal care and IM. One hundred and sixty infant deaths were examined among mothers who used an SBA versus those who did not, mothers who had prenatal care versus those without, and mothers who received prenatal care from a health facility versus traditional providers. The 2014 verbal and social autopsy secondary data set was analyzed using binary logistic regression technique. There was no significant difference in risk of IM between mothers who had SBA during infant delivery in health facility compared to those without SBA during delivery. Mothers who received prenatal care had a significant higher risk of infant death in a health facility compared to those that did not receive prenatal care. Mothers who received prenatal care from traditional providers did not have a statistically significant risk of IM compared to mothers who received prenatal care from a health facility. The findings could have positive social change implications by encouraging multilevel public health stakeholders to support and promote the use of health surveillance in understanding the barriers and challenges of health facility delivery practices, prenatal care, and use of SBA as it relates to IM to facilitate policy change in maternal and infant care practices in Nigeria