Factors associated with the utilisation of skilled delivery services in Papua New Guinea: evidence from the 2016–2018 Demographic and Health Survey

BACKGROUND: We sought to determine the prevalence and factors associated with the use of skilled assistance during delivery in Papua New Guinea. METHODS: We analysed nationally representative data from 5210 women in Papua New Guinea using the 2016–2018 Demographic and Health survey. Both bivariate and multivariable analyses were performed. Statistical significance was set at p<0.05. RESULTS: The prevalence of skilled assistance during delivery was 57.6%. The richest women (adjusted OR [AOR]=3.503, 95% CI 2.477 to 4.954), working women (AOR=1.221, 95% CI 1.037 to 1.439), women with primary (AOR=1.342, 95% CI 1.099 to 1.639), secondary or higher education (AOR=2.030, 95% CI 1.529 to 2.695), women whose partners had a secondary or higher level of education (AOR=1.712, 95% CI 1.343 to 2.181], women who indicated distance was not a big problem in terms of healthcare (AOR=1.424, 95% CI 1.181 to 1.718), women who had ≥4 antenatal care (ANC) visits (AOR=10.63, 95% CI 8.608 to 13.140), women from the Islands region (AOR=1.305, 95% CI 1.045 to 1.628), those who read newspapers or magazines (AOR=1.310, 95% CI 1.027 to 1.669) and women who watched television (AOR=1.477, 95% CI 1.054 to 2.069) less than once a week had higher odds of utilising skilled attendants during delivery. On the contrary, women in the Momase region (AOR=0.543, 95% CI 0.438 to 0.672), women in rural areas (AOR=0.409, 95% CI 0.306 to 0.546), as well as women with a parity of 3 (AOR=0.666, 95% CI 0.505 to 0.878) or ≥4 (AOR=0.645, 95% CI 0.490 to 0.850) had lower odds of utilising skilled attendance during delivery. CONCLUSION: There is relatively low use of skilled delivery services in Papua New Guinea. Wealth, employment status, educational level, parity and number of ANC visits, as well as access to healthcare and place of residence, influence the utilisation of skilled delivery services.