ArticleBMJ open2026
Maternal health, service utilisation and its determinants among women who gave birth in the last 12 months across Afar, Benishangul-Gumuz, Gambella and Somali region, Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study in four developing regional states of Ethiopia.
Article in BMJ open, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesThis study aims to assess maternal health and service utilisation and identify the key determinants across Afar, Benishangul-Gumuz, Gambella and Somali, the four developing regional states (DRS) of Ethiopia.
designA community-based cross-sectional study was conducted from September 2020 to February 2021 using stratified multistage cluster sampling for permanent residents and a random route approach for refugee populations.
settingThe study was conducted at the community level across the DRS of Ethiopia, including Afar, Benishangul-Gumuz, Gambella and Somali regions.
participantsA total of 1226 women who gave birth within the last 12 months participated, including 1028 non-refugees and 198 refugees living in temporary settlements. The mean age of participants was 26.4 years (SD±5.7). PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome was maternal health service utilisation, defined as receiving at least one of the two services, antenatal care (8+ contacts) or postnatal care (staying in a health facility after delivery or visiting a health facility within the first 45 days postpartum and being checked for early postpartum danger signs and taking treatments accordingly).
resultOverall, across the four regions, only 33% of women who had given birth within the last 12 months utilised maternal health services. Regional variation (Benishangul-Gumuz region (AOR=3.269, 95% CI 2.128 to 5.021; p value<0.001), refugee status (AOR=4.022, 95% CI 2.753 to 5.876; p value<0.001) compared with non-refugees, type of residence (urban residents (AOR=1.608, 95% CI 1.129 to 2.291; p value=0.008)), educational status of secondary school or higher (AOR=3.441, 95% CI 1.882 to 6.29; p value<0.001) and women who made decisions by herself or jointly with her husband (AOR=1.872, 95% CI 1.255 to 2.792; p value=0.002) compared with those who do not have decision-making power regarding maternal and child health were significantly associated with maternal health service utilisation.
conclusionMaternal health service utilisation remains critically low in Ethiopia's DRS. Efforts to improve maternal health outcomes should focus on expanding educational opportunities, disseminating trusted information and empowering women in household decision-making.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.