Birth and emergency planning: a cross sectional survey of postnatal women at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Accra, Ghana.

Birth and emergency planning encourages early decision making, helps overcome barriers to skilled maternity care and reduces preventable maternal and newborn deaths. A facility based postnatal survey of 483 childbearing women in Accra, Ghana determined birth and emergency planning steps, awareness of obstetric danger signs, reported maternal and newborn complications and birth outcome based on length of hospital stay. Supervised antenatal care and delivery were nearly universal. Overall, 62% had a birth plan, 74% had adequate knowledge of danger signs, while 64% and 37% reported maternal and newborn complications respectively. Accompaniment by a birth companion and saving money were considered the most useful planning steps. Knowledge of danger signs was associated with birth and emergency planning, and birth and emergency planning was associated with reported birth outcome. Birth and emergency planning as a critical component of antenatal care can influence birth outcomes and should be extended to all pregnant women.