Geospatial Analysis on Access to Maternal Health Care in Jasikan District

Abstract

Provision of maternal health care to pregnant women is to ensure the safety and good health of the mother and baby, but one of the challenges impeding maternal health care is accessible to the service. Access to Maternal health care is affected by where health professionals are located (supply) and where the target population resides (demand). Distance remains one of the key determinants in accessing maternal health care in rural areas due to the sparse location of settlement communities. Fatalities such as maternal mortality, neonatal mortality, stillbirth and infant mortality are higher in developing countries than in developed countries due to miss-match between antennal attendance and the target population. One of the underlining factors to low antenatal and skilled delivery is lack of equitable distribution of resources to target populations. For effective resource allocation such as health facilities and human resource, there should be an efficient way to know where these resources should be placed to maximize utilization by enhancing proximity. The application of geographical information system is to determine the "where" factor for decision and policy formulation with respect to a geographical area. 2step floating catchment area analysis was used concurrently with multiple ring buffer analysis to determine access to maternal health services. The Thematic maps results visualize the geographical distribution pattern of health facilities providing ANC and skilled delivery and their proximity from the settlement communities in Jasikan District. 10 out of 33 communities fall beyond a 5 kilometer buffer radius to access antenatal and delivery services.