Comparison of utilization of maternal health care services among women in urban and rural communities of Ado-Odo Ota Local Government Area, Ogun State Nigeria

Abstract

Objective: To compare the utilization of maternal health services in rural and urban areas.

Design: A comparative cross-sectional study

Setting: The study was carried out in rural and urban areas of Ado-Odo Ota Local Government Area of Ogun State, Nigeria

Participants: Women of reproductive age with at least a child below 2 years

Intervention: A structured interviewer-administered questionnaire was employed to obtain data. Analysis was done using the SPSS version 20. The Chi-square test was used to assess the associations between categorical variables while the T-test was used to compare the means of respondents’ ages. P < 0.05 was taken as statistically significant.

Main Outcome Measures: Utilization of Maternal Health Services

Results: A total of 300 respondents were interviewed each in the rural and urban areas. The Mean ages of respondents in rural and urban areas were 32.5 ± 6.4 years and 31.9 ± 4.6 years respectively (? = 1.418, p = 0.157). Almost all respondents (97.7%) in urban area compared to 79.0% in rural had used maternal health care service in health facilities (?2 = 50.7, p = < 0.001). Previous facility delivery was statistically significantly associated with the utilization of Maternal Health Care Services (MHCS) in both rural (p = <0.001) and urban areas (p = 0.030).

Conclusion/Recommendation: More urban respondents utilized MHCS. Previous utilization of MHCS was significantly associated with utilization. Interventions such as health education that enhance utilization should be encouraged.