Delivery should happen soon and my pain will be reduced: understanding women's perception of good delivery care in India

Figures & data

Table 1 Demographic profile of the respondents

	Participants in in-depth interviews N=17	Participants in focus-group discussion N=32
Age
18–20	5	18
21–25	12	18
Educational status
Illiterate	14	14
Literate, informal education	2	13
Primary level (1–4 class)	1	5
Religion
Hindu	11	23
Muslim	6	9
Caste
General	4	0
Scheduled caste	9	22
Scheduled tribe	4	10
Main economic activity of the head of the household
Cultivator	2	3
Agricultural labourer	4	4
Casual labourer	11	18
Others	0	7
Total number of children
1	7	6
2–3	9	19
More than three children	1	7

Table 2 Women's perception of good delivery care

	Women's perception of good delivery care
Key dimensions of care*	Commonly cited aspects	Other aspects of care
Structure The resources in terms of infrastructure, equipment, drugs and supplies to provide quality care and also the care provided by appropriately trained and supervised providers	Availability of provider Availability of medicine in case of complication and pain management Availability of transport to access health facility
Process Care consistent with scientific knowledge, internationally recognised good practice and that is safe (clean birth practices, avoidance of iatrogenic harm); timely and responsive (respectful, promoting autonomy, equitable).	Emotional support: family members present during delivery Privacy: delivery in a secluded place and absence of male members Hygiene of the delivery place particularly cleanliness of the delivery place The cost of the services Promptness in care	Cognitive support: information provided by provider Kind interpersonal behaviour with the provider Perceived provider competence Perceived completeness of procedures Cleanliness of facility and labour room
Outcome Good clinical outcome (e.g. mortality reduction)	–	_
Other aspects		Influence of community health workers and peers in deciding the place of delivery

* Based on Refs. 8, 12, and 25.

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