Equity in Utilization of Maternal Health Care Services in the Kumasi Metropolis, Ghana
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Date
2015-02-09
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Abstract
Ghana is one of the countries that adopted the 2011 Rio Political Declaration, in which the Member States expressed their determination to achieve social and health equity through action on social determinants of health. The aim of this study was to examine inequity in utilization of maternal health care services in Kumasi Metropolis, Ghana. This was a descriptive cross sectional study which used questionnaires as a data collection technique and tool. A multistage sampling was used to sample women who had given birth within a year prior to the study. The inequity in utilization of maternal health care services was assessed with respect to socio demographic, facility-related and socio cultural factors. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were carried out to elicit the impact of each factor towards inequity in the utilization of maternal health care services. A significant difference was observed among the high socio economic group which in this study were determined by being educated and employed and the low socio economic group, which in this study were determined by being uneducated and unemployed with respect to distance to the health facility (aOR= 1.81, 95% CI = 1.09-3.00) and affordability of the services (aOR = 0.35, 95% CI = 0.18-0.67). Parity, marital status and attitude of medical personnels were also seen to significantly influence utilization of maternal health care services. Age, attendance to the health facility, place of delivery, seeking permission and setting were not significantly (P > 0.05) determining inequity in the utilization of maternal health care services. The study showed evidence of the inequity in the utilization of maternal health care services in Kumasi metropolis. A more rigorous system in which concrete actions are taken to address the maternal health inequities and reduce maternal mortality is recommended.
Description
A Thesis Submitted to the Department Of Community Health, School Of Medical Sciences, College Of Health Sciences, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Partial Fulfillment of Requirements for Masters of Public Health (MPH) Degree in Health Education and Promotion,
Keywords
Equity, Health, Maternal health care, Social determinants of health