Women's perceived barriers to giving birth in health facilities in rural Kenya: A qualitative evidence synthesis

Important factors can be characterised as 'push' factors (those pushing women away from facilities) and 'pull' factors (those related to the relative advantage of facility-based births). However, key to an individual woman's decision are factors relating to knowledge, attitudes and practices and awareness of labour outcomes. While a critical tension exists between government policy and consumer choice, the prevalence of inadequate awareness and the dominance of past experiences and community beliefs offer significant obstacles to a woman in making an informed choice about her preferred place of giving birth.