Introduction: Quality obstetric, medical and nursing care under safe, skilled and well equipped healthrnfacilities during pregnancy, child birth and within 6 weeks after birth can reduce the risk of obstetricrncomplications that may cause death or serious illness to the mother, the baby or both. The use ofrnrecommended appropriate standard facility in the catchment area for delivery and post partum carernstrengthen maternal and child health care at individual, community, health care planners and therngovernment level. In developing countries including Ethiopia, bypassing the nearby health facility forrnchildbirth service wastes resources at all levels. However, the magnitude and factors influencingrnbypassing closer health facilities for childbirth care were not adequately explored.rnObjective: To assess magnitude of bypassing public health centers to hospital for childbirth and identifyrnfactors associated with bypassing in postnatal women in Negist Eleni Memorial hospital.rnMethod: Facility based cross sectional study was conducted among postnatal women in Negist ElenirnMemorial hospital from February to March 2016.A pretested and structured interviewer administeredrnquestionnaire was used to gather data from 393 randomly selected postpartum women included by usingrnsystematic random sampling technique, and then every 2nd eligible woman was interviewed. The data wasrncoded and entered into Epi Info version-7 and exported, cleaned and analyzed using STATA12.1. Tablesrnand charts were used to describe study population and to display results. Bivariate and multivariaternanalysis was done to identify correlates of bypassing public health centers to hospital for delivery service.rnFinding: Sixty seven percent of mothers who gave birth in Negist Eleni Memorial hospital bypassed theirrncatchment public health centers. The likelihood of bypassing health center for delivery service were 4.5rntimes higher among respondents whose husbandâ€™s educational level was above secondary educationrn[AOR=4.5; 95%CI=1.06, 20.29],Past obstetric complications[AOR=0.28; 95% CI=0.09,0.86] andrnantenatal care(ANC) attendance in the health centers[AOR=0.13; 95% CI=0.04,0.46] were associatedrnwith less likely hood of bypassing. The odds of bypassing were 7.8 times higher [AOR=7.8:95%CI=3.5,rn17.5]for those who were living within 13.02km to Nigist Eleni Memorial hospital compared to thosernliving farther.rnConclusion: The proportion of women bypassing health centers to receive childbirth care at hospital inrnour study is high. Preference of the type of health facility for delivery care is associated with husbandrneducation, past obstetric complication, place of ANC follow up and distance to hospital.