Maternal and Child Health Services Utilization During COVID-19 in Eastern Ethiopia

TL;DR

This study examines how the use of maternal and child health services in Eastern Ethiopia changed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Contribution

The study provides new insights into the impact of the pandemic on maternal and child health service utilization in a specific region.

Findings

Total client visits increased by 2%, but postnatal care and child immunization services decreased.

There was a significant difference in service visits before and during the pandemic (f = 4.6, p < 0.04).

Fear of infection or protective measures likely caused missed appointments, leading to unaddressed health issues.

Abstract

Objectives: This study aimed to describe the impact of COVID-19 on maternal and child health service utilization in the Eastern part of Ethiopia.

Methods: Comparative analysis was used to examine 2 years of maternal and child health service utilization. Data were extracted from client registers. A traditional Expert Modeler and one-way Analysis of Variance were used to compare service utilization before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Results: A total of 34,576 client records were reviewed, of which 17,100 (49.5%) and 17,476 (50.5%) had visited the MCH service before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, respectively. The total client visit has shown a 2% percentage point increase. However, postnatal care and child immunization services showed a decrease. Moreover, there was a significant difference between service visits before and during COVID-19 (f = 4.6, p < 0.04).

Conclusion: Mothers and children have missed or unattended facility appointments due to protective impositions or fear of getting infected with COVID-19, which might suggest a higher proportion of MCH issues were not addressed during the pandemic. The health system should therefore improve its resilience and strengthen its access at the lowest health care inlets.

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