Utilisation of private general practitioners to provide caesarean deliveries in five rural district public hospitals in South Africa: a mixed-methods study.

The findings of this study suggest that private GPs can play an important role in filling gaps and expanding quality care in rural public facilities that have insufficient obstetric skills and expertise. Different approaches to enable access to safe caesarean delivery are needed for different contexts, and contracting with experienced private GP's is one resource for rural district hospitals to consider.