Determinants of postnatal care use among mothers who give birth at non-health facilities in Uganda

Abstract

The main objective of the study was to determine the factors that influence postnatal care use among mothers who give birth at non health facilities in Uganda. A sample of 2,643 women who took part in the 2016 Uganda Demographic and Health Surveys (UDHS) was analyzed. Chi-square tests and a binary logistic regression were used to show the association of each of the explanatory variables with post-natal care use (PNC). The prevalence of post-natal care for mothers who give birth at non-health facilities was 26%. Mothers with secondary education had higher odds of utilizing PNC services after giving birth from non-health facilities compared to mothers with no education (OR =1.57, 95% CI=(1.12-2.33), p-value =0.02). Women in the Northern region were more likely to utilize PNC than those in Central region (OR=1.71, 95% CI= (1.2-2.36), p-value =0.01) while the odds of utilizing PNC in the western region reduced significantly than those living in Central (OR=0.52, 95% CI= (0.37-0.73), p-value=0.00). Similarly, women who were in union were less likely to utilize PNC services than those who were not in union (OR=0.76, 95% CI= (0.62-0.93), p-value=0.01). Women whose partners had primary education were more likely to utilize PNC (OR=0.71, 95% CI=0.50-1.00), p-value=0.04) compared to those who did not attend school. Based on the findings, the study recommends that increased higher education and sensitization of the girl child. More importantly there is a need to build awareness and continuous sensitization by the Ministry of Health and other organizations on the dangers of unskilled births and not utilizing PNC services from skilled personnel targeting girls with primary or no education. There is need to frame policies and programs which target mothers who are married, mothers with less or no education, mothers living in Western region of Uganda where PNC use is limited. Equity in resource allocation across all regions in the country through increase in budget allocation from government, grants and donors aid to combat the great variation in PNC use.