Deaths of children due to neglected dental diseases have put the issue of access to care by minorities at the forefront of dental public health discussions. We evaluated the trends in dental service utilization in relation to racial disparities and other factors using Medicaid enrollment and claims data from 1990 to 1997 for Alabama children 19 years of age and younger (N=512,049). Alabama Medi...

BACKGROUND Understanding patterns of health service utilization can improve health care and increase use of health services. We examined patterns of health service utilization among residents of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. METHODS A total of 500 adults were surveyed using paper-based questionnaires. The χ(2) test and multiple logistic regression were used to identify associations between factors. ...

BACKGROUND Kenya abolished delivery fees in all public health facilities through a presidential directive effective on June 1, 2013 with an aim of promoting health facility delivery service utilization and reducing pregnancy-related mortality in the country. This paper aims to provide a brief overview of this policy's effect on health facility delivery service utilization and maternal mortality...

BACKGROUND The utilization of reproductive health services is an important component in preventing adolescents from different sexual and reproductive health problems. It plays a vital role in safeguarding youth in Sub-Saharan African countries including Ethiopia, which accounts for a high proportion of the region's new HIV infections as well as maternal and infant mortality ratios. Due to this,...

BACKGROUND Poor maternal health service utilization is one of the contributing factors to a high level of maternal and newborn mortality in Ethiopia. The factors associated with utilization of services are believed to differ from one context to another. We assessed the factors associated with skilled delivery service utilization in rural northern Ethiopia. SUBJECTS AND METHODS A community-bas...

BACKGROUND The risk of death from complications relating to pregnancy and childbirth over the course of a woman's lifetime is higher in the developing countries. Improving the health of mothers and children through well-organized institutional delivery service is central to achieve reduced maternal and child morbidity and mortality. So, factors that underlie the level of institutional delivery ...

BACKGROUND As an important outcome of the health system, equity in health service utilization has attracted an increasing amount of attention in the literature on health reform in China in recent years. The poor, who frequently require more services, are often the least able to pay, while the wealthy utilize disproportionately more services although they have less need. Whereas equity in health...

BACKGROUND The caregivers of left-behind children (CLBC) in China's poor, rural areas are mostly elderly and women. Their health status and access to health services have not been previously characterized. This study aims to explore the status of CLBC in terms of their health service utilization and to provide a scientific basis for guiding effective implementation of health policy in rural Hun...