Availability, utilization, and the impact of free maternal healthcare policies on maternal health out comes in selected Sub-Saharan African countries : a systematic review
Abstract:
The World Health Organization reports that over two-thirds of maternal and child mortality occur in the developing world, specifically in the sub-Saharan Africa. To curb the high maternal and child mortalities, some Sub-Saharan countries like Ghana, Burkina Faso, Kenya, Tanzania, Niger, Nigeria, Mali, Sierra Leone, and South-Africa adopted the Free Maternal Health Care Policy.This study assessed the availability utilization and the impact of the Free Maternal Health Care Policy in select SSA countries, deploying a systematic review process.A comparative analysis of the Free Maternal Health Care Policy across countries, categorized as either strong or weak of the show that the policies have not significantly impacted Maternal and Child Health outcomes, however the availability of Sexual and Reproductive Health Services in both the weak and strong policy countries has increased significantly since the adoption of the policy. In both the weak and strong policy countries, the utilization of the services offered under the policy is confounded by factors as the Out-Of-Pocket Expenditure, quality of services, cultural and religious barriers, and socioeconomic status. Summarily, cost removal is not sufficient since utilization of maternal health is multifactorial. Besides, removing the fees governments must be committed to addressing other factors to see an improved in outcomes, the utilization and the availability and use of services. This work has highlighted what the policies have achieved so far and recommended what needs to be done to address shortcomings. Further research is none the less required, focused on the impact of the on outcomes since it is an area that has been least explored.
Thammasat University. Thammasat University Library