Postnatal Care Service Utilization and Associated Factors Among Women in Rural Afghanistan: A Cross‐Sectional Analysis of the 2022–2023 Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey
Cross-sectional analysis shows low postnatal care utilization in rural Afghanistan, indicating key areas for improvement.
Key Points
This analysis explores the factors influencing postnatal care service utilization among women in rural Afghanistan.
Utilized secondary data from the 2022–2023 Afghanistan Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS).
Included ever-married women aged 15–49 with at least one live birth in the past two years.
Applied bivariate and multivariable logistic regression models to identify associated factors.
Only 14.4% of women had at least one postnatal care visit (95% CI 13.3–15.4%).
Postnatal care utilization was significantly higher for women delivering in public (AOR = 2.73, 95% CI: 2.27–3.28) and private (AOR = 2.21, 95% CI: 1.63–2.98) facilities.
Significant associations were found with antenatal care visits and the education level of the household head.