OBJECTIVETo understand the situation of institutional delivery of rural pregnant women in Guangxi Autonomous Region in the period of 1998 - 2003 and to identify the determinants on institutional delivery utilization.

METHODSUsing Andersen's behavioral model as analytical framework and Guangxi databank of the 3rd National Health Service Survey as data source, we described the status of institutional delivery with the rural women having had live birth history in the period of 1998 - 2003 as subjects, while and the univariate analysis and multivariate logistic analysis were done to identify determinants of institutional delivery utilization.

RESULTSAmong a total number of 407 women with live birth history, 39.80 percent of them delivered at the health-care facilities. The rate of institutional delivery increased annually in 1998 - 2003 (P< 0.0001). The proportion of delivery in township health centers increased and the proportion of home delivery decreased by year (P< 0.0001). Results from both univariate and multivariate analysis showed that parity, education background of women, type of drinking water, time needed to get to the nearest healthcare facilities by the most convenient traffic,frequency of prenatal checkup, together with whether or not being advocated on institutional delivery etc. were determinants of delivery utilization. The OR value were 1.749 for multipara, 1.995 for those going to the nearest healthcare facilities by the most convenient traffic in less than 10 minutes, 3.011 for those drinking tap water, 5.435 for those with the education of high school, 29.149 for those with over 5 times in terms of frequency of prenatal checkup and 37.822 for those being advocated on institutional delivery.

CONCLUSIONSocio-economic situation, status of maternal health care and parity made main contribution to institutional delivery and skilled birth attendance for women in rural Guangxi.