Urban-rural inequalities and spatial arrangement of informed choice of family planning in Ethiopia: Further analysis of 2016 Ethiopian demographic health survey.

Abstract

BackgroundEthiopia has made satisfactory progress in improving maternal and child health over the past two decades. The introduction of family planning through informed choice is one of the main strategies to improve maternal and child health. However, this positive progress may have masked the significant urban-rural disparities in informed choice for family planning.ObjectiveTo identify factor contributing to observed urban-rural disparities and to determine the spatial distribution of informed family planning choices in Ethiopia.MethodsThe study used information from 3,511 women currently using contraceptives (rural-2685 and urban-826) as per recent Ethiopian demographic health survey cross-sectional data. Spatial and descriptive, bivariable, and multivariable logit-based decomposition analysis methods were used.ResultsThe spatial configuration of uninformed choice was clustered. The primary cluster (LLR = 34.8, p-valueConclusionThe variables being private health facility visitors, being aged between 35 and 49 years and having visited health facilities in the last one year are found to increase the gap of informed family planning choices between urban and rural residents Besides, the spatial distribution of uninformed family planning choices is non-random.