title: Factors associated with different types of birth attendants for home deliveries: an analysis of the cross-sectional 2010 South Sudan household survey.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  In South Sudan, birth deliveries attended by unskilled birth attendants put the mothers and their newborns at increased risk of perinatal morbidity and mortality. The aim of this study was to identify factors associated with delivery by unskilled birth attendants or by unassisted delivery.
  
  
  METHODS
  We examined data for 2,767 (weighted total) women aged 15-49 years who delivered at home 2 years prior to the South Sudan Household Health Survey 2010. Multinomial logistic regression analyses were used to identify factors associated with delivery by unskilled birth attendants or by unassisted delivery.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The prevalence of delivery by unskilled birth attendants was 19% [95% confidence interval (CI) 17.0, 20.5], by skilled birth attendants (SBAs) was 45% (95% CI 42.4, 47.0), and by unassisted delivery was 36% (95% CI 34.2, 38.6). After adjusting for potential confounders, the following factors were associated with the increased odds for unassisted delivery or delivery by an unskilled birth attendant: mothers with no schooling, who did not attend antenatal care (ANC) during pregnancy, who had lower quality of ANC services, from poor households, or who had no prior knowledge about obstetric danger signs.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We found that non-utilization of maternal health care services, such as ANC, was significantly associated with unattended birth delivery or delivery by unskilled health providers. The increased uptake of SBAs at delivery will require easier access to ANC services, health promotion on the importance and benefits of SBAs for delivery, targeting both mothers and their families, and the training and deployment of more SBAs across the country.
authors.affiliation: Sydney School of Public Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia; n.mugo@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Ngatho S
authors.initials: NS
authors.lastname: Mugo
authors.affiliation: School of Science and Health, Western Sydney University, Penrith, Australia.
authors.forename: Kingsley E
authors.initials: KE
authors.lastname: Agho
authors.affiliation: School of Social Sciences, University of New South Wales, Kensington, Australia.
authors.forename: Anthony B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Zwi
authors.affiliation: Sydney School of Public Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
authors.forename: Michael J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Dibley
keywords: South Sudan; home birth; maternal health services; skilled birth attendants; socio-economic factors