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Access to Maternal Health in Regions of Rwanda: A Qualitative Study

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Practicing Health Geography

Part of the book series: Global Perspectives on Health Geography ((GPHG))

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Abstract

Access to health care is essential to achieving the best health outcomes. In this chapter, I highlight the structural, geographical, social-cultural and economic factors that act as facilitators or barriers to accessing maternal health services at the community level in Rwanda. Using five dimensions of access to health care (availability, accessibility, accommodation, affordability and acceptability), I qualitatively explore community dynamics pertaining to women’s access to community maternal health services in both rural and urban settings. I also examine the role of volunteer community health workers, who are elected by their own communities to provide maternal health services to women, and link communities to the formal health care system.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geography, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada

    Germaine Tuyisenge

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  1. Germaine Tuyisenge
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Place Alert Labs, Department of Surveying and Geomatics, Midlands State University, Gweru, Zimbabwe

    Prestige Tatenda Makanga

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Tuyisenge, G. (2021). Access to Maternal Health in Regions of Rwanda: A Qualitative Study. In: Makanga, P.T. (eds) Practicing Health Geography. Global Perspectives on Health Geography. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-63471-1_8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-63471-1_8

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-63470-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-63471-1

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