Limbu, Prashanti
(2024)
Evaluating the association between socio-demographic variables and place of delivery in Nepal: A Review of the Literature.
Master Essay, University of Pittsburgh.
Abstract
Nepal is a multi-ethnic, multilinguistic, and landlocked country where one third of its population lives below the multidimensional poverty level. In 2020, Nepal’s maternal mortality ratio (MMR), or the number of maternal deaths during a given period per 100,000 live births during the period, was 174. This is higher than other Southeast Asian Region neighboring countries like India (103), Bangladesh (123), and Bhutan (60). The higher MMR in Nepal may stem from the wide disparity in the utilization of maternal health services, which varies by one’s socio-economic status. The World Health Organization (WHO) also suggests the presence of skilled health professionals to assist in delivery that mothers to visit a health facility within 2 hours of delivery. Therefore, it is essential to evaluate the effect of women’s socio-economic status on access to institutional delivery. To gain a better understanding of this issue in Nepal, a search of the relevant literature was conducted on Ovid-Medline related to maternal health and factors affecting the place of delivery accessible by women in Nepal resulting in 16 studies which met the inclusion criteria. Most of the studies showed an association between the place of delivery (Health institution or home) and three socio-demographic variables: mother’s education (n=8), household wealth index (n=7), mother’s ethnicity (n=4). The association with institutional delivery was positive for women with higher education, the advantaged ethnicities such as Brahmin/Chhetri whereas the association was mostly negative for Dalit and for Janajati subgroups which are the lower caste group in the social class system and indigenous groups of Nepal. Mothers who belonged to a wealthy household had higher likelihood of giving birth in a health institution with skilled health professionals. Collectively, these findings provide insights into how different socio-demographic factors influence the ability of mothers to utilize maternal-health services for delivery. Negative perceptions about institutional delivery among mothers may escalate the issue of MMR which is already a persistent public health issue. Therefore, lower use of institutional delivery services by women in Nepal remains an important public health issue which should be addressed to reduce the maternal deaths and MMR.
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Details
| Item Type: |
Other Thesis, Dissertation, or Long Paper
(Master Essay)
|
| Status: |
Unpublished |
| Creators/Authors: |
|
| Contributors: |
| Contribution | Contributors Name | Email | Pitt Username | ORCID  |
|---|
| Thesis advisor | Glynn, Nancy W. | epidnwg@pitt.edu | epidnwg | UNSPECIFIED | | Committee Member | Baumann, Sara E. | sarabaumann@pitt.edu | sarabaumann | UNSPECIFIED | | Committee Member | Ellison, Jacqueline E. | jellison@pitt.edu | jellison | UNSPECIFIED |
|
| Date: |
3 January 2024 |
| Date Type: |
Completion |
| Submission Date: |
15 December 2023 |
| Access Restriction: |
2 year -- Restrict access to University of Pittsburgh for a period of 2 years. |
| Number of Pages: |
51 |
| Institution: |
University of Pittsburgh |
| Schools and Programs: |
School of Public Health > Epidemiology |
| Degree: |
MPH - Master of Public Health |
| Thesis Type: |
Master Essay |
| Refereed: |
Yes |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: |
Nepal, socio-demographic variables, maternal health services, maternal health, Wealth, education of women, education of mothers, instituional delivery, place of delivery, MMR, maternal deaths, utilize maternal health services. |
| Date Deposited: |
03 Jan 2024 17:24 |
| Last Modified: |
03 Jan 2024 17:24 |
| URI: |
http://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/id/eprint/45706 |
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