ArticleBMC pregnancy and childbirth2026
Second and third delays in emergency obstetric care: predictors in Northwest Cameroon.
Article in BMC pregnancy and childbirth, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundMaternal mortality in Cameroon's conflict-affected Northwest Region remains high, with delays in accessing and receiving emergency obstetric care (EmOC) being a major contributor. Using the Three Delays Model, this study investigated socioeconomic and health system predictors of the second delay (reaching a health facility after deciding to seek care) and third delay (receiving adequate care upon arrival) among postnatal women in referral hospitals.
methodsA hospital-based cross-sectional study was conducted from June 2024 to April 2025 (11 months) among 472 postnatal women across eight high-volume public referral facilities in the Northwest Region. Data were collected using a structured, interviewer-administered questionnaire adapted from validated tools. Delays were defined using a two-stage approach: an initial screening question followed by time thresholds (> 1 h from decision to arrival for the second delay; >1 h from arrival to care for the third delay), with additional contributing barriers assessed via closed-ended yes/no questions. Univariable chi-square analysis and multivariable binary logistic regression were performed in SPSS version 25 to identify independent predictors. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05.
resultsSecond delay affected 124 women (26.3%) and was independently predicted by rural residence (AOR = 2.82, 95% CI: 1.79-4.45, p < 0.001), semi-urban residence (AOR = 2.04, 95% CI: 1.23-3.38, p = 0.005), and low household income (< 25,000 FCFA) (AOR = 3.46, 95% CI: 1.66-7.21, p = 0.001). Third delay affected 154 women (32.6%), with lower odds among women aged 20-29 years (AOR = 0.42, 95% CI: 0.22-0.80, p = 0.008), those aged 30-39 years (AOR = 0.51, 95% CI: 0.28-0.93, p = 0.029), married women (AOR = 0.42, 95% CI: 0.26-0.68, p < 0.001), and women earning 51,000-100,000 FCFA (AOR = 0.39, 95% CI: 0.19-0.80, p = 0.010). Self-reported barriers included staffing shortages (40.2%), poor service quality (50.8%), blood supply issues (33.9%), and long admission processes (33.7%).
conclusionOver one-quarter of women experienced delays in reaching EmOC facilities, driven by rural residence and low income, while one-third faced delays in receiving care, associated with lower odds among married women and those with moderate income. Self-reported systemic barriers, including staffing shortages, poor infrastructure, and inefficient referrals, compound socioeconomic vulnerabilities in this conflict-affected zone. Targeted interventions, such as subsidised rural transport, digital referral systems, and enhanced facility readiness, are urgently needed to reduce preventable maternal deaths and advance Cameroon's SDG 3.1 commitments.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.