Perceptions of healthcare professionals on collaborating with traditional birth attendants in reproductive health promotion in Northern Namibia.

Traditional birth attendants (TBAs) render diverse culturally acceptable reproductive health services to women and the new-born babies. However, there is no collaboration between TBAs and healthcare professionals (HCPs) in Namibia. This study explored the perceptions of HCPs regarding the collaborative roles of TBAs. An exploratory, descriptive qualitative research design was utilized to purposively select and interview twenty-two (22) multidisciplinary HCPs. Latent content analysis was used to evaluate and synthesize the data thematically. HCPs agreed that TBAs are relevant in their communities and could complement the formal health system within the scope of health promotion. Collaboration can enable TBAs to encourage pregnant women to attend antenatal care and, where the need arises, may assist with emergency births in remote places in a safe manner. This study recommends developing a framework of collaboration that outlines the scope of practice for TBAs to inform regulation and recognition thereof.