Utilisation and associated socio-demographic factors related to the maternal continuum of care in sub-Saharan Africa: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Maternal continuum of care (MCC) is the utilisation of maternal health care services, including 4+ antenatal care (ANC) visits, skilled birth attendants (SBAs), and postnatal care (PNC). This systematic review and meta-analysis assessed the pooled proportion of MCC utilisation among women in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and its association with selected sociodemographic factors. Methods: We identified keywords and MeSH terms related to the condition (MCC), the context (SSA), and population (women with history of childbirth) to search for published or unpublished observational studies. We used the Joanna Briggs Institute tool to extract data and the Newcastle Ottawa Scale for quality assessment. Meta-analysis was used to compute pooled estimates (MCC utilisation and odds ratio (OR) associates) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) using Stata 17. Results: Of 45 402 studies identified, we included 23 involving 320 353 women. The pooled estimate of MCC utilisation across SSA was 18.72% (95% CI = 14.51, 22.93), showing a significant increase (P < 0.05) from 2015 to 2022. Southern Africa had the highest MCC utilisation (38%; 95% CI = 36.59, 39.41), while East Africa had the lowest (17.5%; 95% CI = 12.22, 22.75). Maternal continuum of care utilisation was associated with maternal age 25-34 years (pooled odds ratio (POR) = 1.27), urban residence (POR = 2.69), richer/richest wealth status (POR = 1.68), as well as higher level of education and employment (POR = 1.32). Conclusions: MCC utilisation in SSA remains low, with significant variation across the sub-regions and sociodemographic strata. Context-specific interventions targeting identified factors are essential to enhance MCC utilisation in SSA. Registration: PROSPERO: CRD42021272708.