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A Study on Extent of Utilization of Maternal Health Care Services through Community Health Workers among Rural Women in Ruhango District at Rwanda
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The use of community health workers has been identified as one strategy to address the growing shortage of health workers, particularly in low-income countries. Community health workers (CHWs) are widely used to provide care for a broad range of health issues. The study is aimed to assess the extent of utilization of maternal health care services among rural women by CHWs. A sample of 120 respondents was randomly selected from 30 villages. Questionnaire method was used for data collection and analysis was done through frequency and percentage. All the respondents (100%) were educated about maternal health by CHWs. Majority of respondents (85%) was visited for 3 times by CHWs before delivery. Furthermore, 53 per cent of the respondents undergone check up for 4 times. Majority of respondents (98%) were accompanied by CHWs to the health centre or hospital during delivery period. All those who had experienced complication (68%) during delivery had taken treatment with the help of CHWs. All the respondents (100%) were visited immediately at their homes after delivery by CHWs. In this paper, an attempt has been made to show how CHWs played a vital role in increasing the access to health care services among women and working within a community-based team to educate them on the importance of antenatal care and postnatal care with a skilled professional.
Keywords
Ante Natal Care, Delivery Care, Community Health Workers, Health Care Services.
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