Health policy and planning
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Lack of information on the warning signs of complications during pregnancy, parturition and postpartum hampers women's ability to partake fully in safe motherhood initiatives. We assessed the extent to which women in 19 countries of sub-Saharan Africa recall receiving information about pregnancy complications during antenatal care for the most recent pregnancy, and examined the impact of advice receipt on the likelihood of institutional delivery. ⋯ There is a high level of unmet need for information on pregnancy complications in sub-Saharan Africa, particularly among those who face significant barriers to accessing care if complications occur. Educational interventions are critical to safe motherhood initiatives; health providers must fully use the educational opportunity in antenatal care.