Adolescent fertility and family planning in East Asia and the Pacific: a review of DHS reports

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Adolescent pregnancy has significant health and socio-economic consequences for women, their families and communities. Efforts to prevent too-early pregnancy rely on accurate information about adolescents' knowledge, behaviours and access to family planning, however available data are limited in some settings. Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) reports are recognised as providing nationally representative data that are accessible to policymakers and programmers. This paper reviews DHS reports for low and lower middle income countries in East Asia and the Pacific to determine what information regarding adolescent fertility and family planning is available, and summarises key findings.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The most recent DHS reports were sought for the 33 low and lower middle income countries in the East Asia and Pacific region as defined by UNICEF and World Bank. Age-disaggregated data for all indicators relevant to fertility and current use, knowledge and access to family planning information and services were sought to identify accessible information. Reported data were analysed using an Excel database to determine outcomes for adolescents and compare with adult women.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>DHS reports were available for eleven countries: Cambodia, Indonesia, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Tuvalu and Vietnam. Twenty seven of 40 relevant DHS indicators reported outcomes for adolescent women aged 15-19 years. There were limited data for unmarried adolescents. A significant proportion of women commence sexual activity and childbearing during adolescence in the context of low contraceptive prevalence and high unmet need for contraception. Adolescent women have lower use of contraception, poorer knowledge of family planning and less access to information and services than adult women.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>DHS reports provide useful and accessible data, however, they are limited by the failure to report data for unmarried adolescents and report age-disaggregated data for some indicators. Further research is required to better understand the barriers that both married and unmarried adolescents face accessing reproductive health information and services, and their information and service delivery preferences.</p

Factors associated with underutilization of antenatal care services in Indonesia: results of Indonesia Demographic and Health Survey 2002/2003 and 2007

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Antenatal care aims to prevent maternal and perinatal mortality and morbidity. In Indonesia, at least four antenatal visits are recommended during pregnancy. However, this service has been underutilized. This study aimed to examine factors associated with underutilization of antenatal care services in Indonesia.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We used data from Indonesia Demographic and Health Survey (IDHS) 2002/2003 and 2007. Information of 26,591 singleton live-born infants of the mothers' most recent birth within five years preceding each survey was examined. Twenty-three potential risk factors were identified and categorized into four main groups, external environment, predisposing, enabling, and need factors. Logistic regression models were used to examine the association between all potential risk factors and underutilization of antenatal services. The Population Attributable Risk (PAR) was calculated for selected significant factors associated with the outcome.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Factors strongly associated with underutilization of antenatal care services were infants from rural areas and from outer Java-Bali region, infants from low household wealth index and with low maternal education level, and high birth rank infants with short birth interval of less than two years. Other associated factors identified included mothers reporting distance to health facilities as a major problem, mothers less exposed to mass media, and mothers reporting no obstetric complications during pregnancy. The PAR showed that 55% of the total risks for underutilization of antenatal care services were attributable to the combined low household wealth index and low maternal education level.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Strategies to increase the accessibility and availability of health care services are important particularly for communities in rural areas. Financial support that enables mothers from poor households to use health services will be beneficial. Health promotion programs targeting mothers with low education are vital to increase their awareness about the importance of antenatal services.</p

Mortality in Central Java: results from the indonesian mortality registration system strengthening project

Background. Mortality statistics from death registration systems are essential for health policy and development. Indonesia has recently mandated compulsory death registration across the entire country in December 2006. This article describes the methods and results from activities to ascertain causes of registered deaths in two pilot registration areas in Central Java during 2006-2007. The methods involved several steps, starting with adaptation of international standards for reporting causes of registered deaths for implementation in two sites, Surakarta (urban) and Pekalongan (rural). Causes for hospital deaths were certified by attending physicians. Verbal autopsies were used for home deaths. Underlying causes were coded using ICD-10. Completeness of registration was assessed in a sample of villages and urban wards by triangulating data from the health sector, the civil registration system, and an independent household survey. Finally, summary mortality indicators and cause of death rankings were developed for each site. Findings. A total of 10,038 deaths were registered in the two sites during 2006-2007; yielding annual crude death rates of 5.9 to 6.8 per 1000. Data completeness was higher in rural areas (72.5%) as compared to urban areas (52%). Adjusted life expectancies at birth were higher for both males and females in the urban population as compared to the rural population. Stroke, ischaemic heart disease and chronic respiratory disease are prominent causes in both populations. Other important causes are diabetes and cancer in urban areas; and tuberculosis and diarrhoeal diseases in rural areas. Conclusions. Non-communicable diseases cause a significant proportion of premature mortality in Central Java. Implementing cause of death reporting in conjunction with death registration appears feasible in Indonesia. Better collaboration between health and registration sectors is required to improve data quality. These are the first local mortality measures for health policy and monitoring in Indonesia. Strong demand for data from different stakeholders can stimulate further strengthening of mortality registration systems

Why don't some women attend antenatal and postnatal care services?: a qualitative study of community members' perspectives in Garut, Sukabumi and Ciamis districts of West Java Province, Indonesia

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Antenatal, delivery and postnatal care services are amongst the recommended interventions aimed at preventing maternal and newborn deaths worldwide. West Java is one of the provinces of Java Island in Indonesia with a high proportion of home deliveries, a low attendance of four antenatal services and a low postnatal care uptake. This paper aims to explore community members' perspectives on antenatal and postnatal care services, including reasons for using or not using these services, the services received during antenatal and postnatal care, and cultural practices during antenatal and postnatal periods in Garut, Sukabumi and Ciamis districts of West Java province.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A qualitative study was conducted from March to July 2009 in six villages in three districts of West Java province. Twenty focus group discussions (FGDs) and 165 in-depth interviews were carried out involving a total of 295 respondents. The guidelines for FGDs and in-depth interviews included the topics of community experiences with antenatal and postnatal care services, reasons for not attending the services, and cultural practices during antenatal and postnatal periods.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Our study found that the main reason women attended antenatal and postnatal care services was to ensure the safe health of both mother and infant. Financial difficulty emerged as the major issue among women who did not fulfil the minimum requirements of four antenatal care services or two postnatal care services within the first month after delivery. This was related to the cost of health services, transportation costs, or both. In remote areas, the limited availability of health services was also a problem, especially if the village midwife frequently travelled out of the village. The distances from health facilities, in addition to poor road conditions were major concerns, particularly for those living in remote areas. Lack of community awareness about the importance of these services was also found, as some community members perceived health services to be necessary only if obstetric complications occurred. The services of traditional birth attendants for antenatal, delivery, and postnatal care were widely used, and their roles in maternal and child care were considered vital by some community members.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>It is important that public health strategies take into account the availability, affordability and accessibility of health services. Poverty alleviation strategies will help financially deprived communities to use antenatal and postnatal health services. This study also demonstrated the importance of health promotion programs for increasing community awareness about the necessity of antenatal and postnatal services.</p

Iron and folic acid supplements in pregnancy improve child survival in Indonesia

Background: Several trials have shown that iron-folic acid supplements during pregnancy protect newborns against preterm delivery and early neonatal death, but the impact beyond the neonatal period is unclear. Objective: We determined whether live-born children <5 y of age born to mothers who used antenatal iron-folic acid supplements had reduced risk of death. Design: Pooled 1994, 1997, 2002–2003, and 2007 Indonesia Demographic and Health Survey data were used to examine the relation between the use of iron-folic acid supplements and child death in 3 cumulative (0–30 d, 0–11 mo, and 0–4 y) and 4 mutually exclusive (first day of life and 1–30 d, 1–11 mo, and 1–4 y of age) time periods. Risk of death was estimated by using Cox regression to control for 19 potential confounders. Results: Survival information for 52,917 singleton live-born infants and 1525 deaths of children <5 y of age was examined. After adjustment for potential confounders, risk of death of children <5 y of age was reduced significantly by 34% if the mother consumed any iron-folic acid supplements [adjusted HR (aHR): 0.66; 95% CI: 0.53, 0.81; P < 0.001]. This protective effect was greatest for deaths on the first day of life (aHR: 0.40; 95% CI: 0.21, 0.77; P = 0.005) but was also shown for neonatal deaths on days 1–30 of life (aHR: 0.69; 95% CI: 0.49, 0.97; P = 0.035) and postneonatal deaths (aHR: 0.74; 95% CI: 0.56, 0.99; P = 0.044). There was a strong dose response of greater protection from death of children <5 y of age with increasing numbers of iron-folic acid supplements consumed. Conclusion: In developing countries increased use of antenatal iron-folic acid supplements will reduce deaths of children <5 y of age, especially in the first year of life