Abstract
Aim
This study aims to examine factors associated with non-utilization of maternal and child health services in Nigeria.
Methods
Secondary data from the 2013 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey were utilized. A sample of 18,712 women aged 15–49 years who had had a child in the 5 years preceding the survey was selected. Variables on demographic and socio-economic characteristics of the study sample were analysed. Data analysis was carried out using STATA version 12 software. Univariate, bivariate and multivariate analyses were conducted.
Results
We found that 48.83% of women had not made at least four antenatal care (ANC) visits, 62.34% delivered at home, while 71.43% had not received postnatal care (PNC). Multivariate analysis indicated that geo-political zone, location, women’s education, religion, socio-economic status, marital status and husband’s education were significantly associated with the non-utilization of ANC services, health facilities for delivery and PNC services.
Conclusion
Our study concludes that maternal health-seeking behaviour is poor among women of reproductive age in Nigeria. In addition, demographic and socio-economic factors were significantly associated with the non-utilization of maternal and child health services. There is an urgent need for interventions to encourage the use of these services among women of reproductive age. Policy-makers need to design and implement policies targeted at women from the poorest households, who are less educated and living in rural areas or in the North West or South South region. This will assist in promoting change in maternal health-seeking behaviour.
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A request was made for microdata from the NDHS website on September 8, 2017, and approval granted for downloading on the same day. Hence, there were no ethical issues of concern as this is publicly available information.
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Issues of informed consent were addressed by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) of ICF Macro International in the United States and the National Health Research Ethics Committee (NHREC) of the Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH) of Nigeria.
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Aregbeshola, B.S., Khan, S.M. Factors associated with non-utilization of maternal and child health services in Nigeria: results from the 2013 Nigeria demographic and health survey. J Public Health (Berl.) 27, 357–365 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10389-018-0950-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10389-018-0950-4