Outcome of Emergency Obstetric Care training on knowledge and risk assessment skills of healthcare providers in Ibadan, Southwest Nigeria

Background The alarmingly high rate of maternal mortality in Nigeria is a public health concern. Emergency Obstetric care (EmOC) training has proven to be effective in the improvement of maternal health worldwide, yet numerous studies have shown that most healthcare providers (HCPs) in Nigeria still demonstrate poor knowledge and skills of EmOC. This study evaluated the outcomes of EmOC training on knowledge and risk assessment skills (RAS) of HCPs in Ibadan metropolis. Method The study utilised a quasi-experimental design; six Local Government Areas in Ibadan were purposely selected and randomly assigned to Intervention Group (IG) and Control Group (CG). A total sampling technique was used to select 319 HCPs (Nurses, Midwives, Community Health Workers); 153 in IG and 166 in CG. Data was collected by distributing validated questionnaires to HCPs. At baseline, knowledge and skills were assessed in both groups; IG received seven hours of training for two days. Immediate (P1), three (P2), and six months (P3) post-intervention assessments were conducted. The knowledge scores were categorised as good (≥85.0%) and poor (<85.0%), while RAS was as good (≥75th percentile) and poor (<75th percentile). Data analyses were done using both descriptive and inferential statistics, and the significance level was set at 0.05%. Results The mean age of HCPs in IG, CG, and overall were 45.7±7.9, 44.3±8.7, and 45±8.4 years, respectively. At baseline, both IG and CG had poor knowledge (0.0%; 2.4%) and RAS (0.0%; 1.8%), respectively. There was a persistent increase, compared with baseline values, in the proportion of participants in the IG with good knowledge (10.5%, 19.0%, 10.1%), RAS (47.1%, 19.4%, 13.5%) at P1, P2, and P3, respectively. However, a sharp decline was noticed among the IG at six months for knowledge and RAS (10.1%, 13.5%), while knowledge and RAS remained consistently poor among the CG. HCPs in the IG were more likely to have higher knowledge (aOR=3.70; CI: 1.67-8.20), RAS (aOR=4.74; CI: 2.41-9.36) compared with CG. Conclusion Emergency obstetric care training improved healthcare providers’ knowledge and RAS. This should be replicated in other health facilities across Nigeria and repeated, at least, every six months for knowledge and skills retention.