**2. Methods**

#### **2.1 Research design**

The study used a qualitative cross-sectional design using phenomenology to assess the knowledge of parents of children with CP on National Health Policy, explore the perceptions of parents of children with CP on the implementation of the National Health Policy in Ghana, identify parental factors and healthcare factors that influence access to healthcare services for children with CP. Phenomenology allows participants to share their perceptions, feelings, and lived experiences in accessing healthcare services for their wards with CP and how these experiences influence their ability to access healthcare for their children with CP.

#### **2.2 Study area**

The study was conducted in the Greater Accra Region (GAR) of Ghana because there are quite a lot of parents of children with CP and an existing self-help group (**Figure 1**). There are over 500 parents of children with CP and about 20 existing self-help groups in GAR. The study considered the Special Mothers Project selfhelp group in Okponglo in the Greater Accra Region. The Special Mothers Project has been existing for the past 7 years and is open to every parent of children with disabilities especially those with children with cerebral palsy. GAR is the capital town of Ghana and has the smallest area of Ghana's sixteen (16) administrative regions. GAR can be found in the South-East part of the country and it is surrounded on the north by the Eastern Region, on the east by the Volta Region, on the south by the Gulf of Guinea, and on the west by the Central Region. GAR is divided into sixteen districts and its political administration is through the local government. Each district is administered by a Chief Executive who represents the central government.

*Access to Healthcare Services Among Children with Cerebral Palsy in the Greater Accra Region… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.106684*

**Figure 1.** *Map showing health districts in Greater Accra. Source: Google Maps [12].*
