| dc.description.abstract | The married women find it hard to make independent decisions on their health care due to influence of culture norms, gender disparities within marriage and other socio-cultural factors. The main objective of the study was to establish the factors that influence decision making on own health care among married women in Eastern Uganda.
This study used secondary data with a weighted sample of 3241 women of the reproductive age group (15-49) from the 2016 Uganda Demographic and Health Survey. Data was analyzed using STATA into frequency tables and percentages and the association between the dependent and independent variables were tested at both bivariate level and multivariate level with a confidence interval set at 95%.
Descriptive analysis on the factors associated with decision making on own health care among married women in eastern Uganda was analyzed and logistic regression on the basis of decision making on own health care was analyzed. The prevalence of decision making on own health care among women in Eastern Uganda was assessed and this was 26%. Majority of these women were from rural areas that ( 87% )and had attained primary education(65%) were working in agriculture and self-employed (55.4%) aged 15-24 (50.2%) in the middle wealth quintile (47.3) and were Anglicans (36%) whose husband’s age was between 25-34 (33.6%).
At bivariate level, respondent’s education, occupation, respondent’s age and husband’s age were statistically significant associated with decision making on own health care among married women in Eastern Uganda with education having a p-value of (0.0100),occupation(p-0.0000),respondent’s age (p-0.0000), husband’s age (p-0000).
The odds of decision making on own health care were higher among women aged 40-49 compared with women aged 15-29 OR, CI and p-values of ( OR= 2.25, CI: 1.65-3.09, 0.000), higher among muslims compared to Anglicans (OR=0.71, CI: 0.56-0.90, 0.006), higher among women doing professional/ sales (OR=1.61, CI: 1.18-2.16, 0.002), lower among women in the highest wealth index (OR= 0.63, CI: 0.48-0.82, 0.001) and higher among women with husband’s age between 35-44 (OR=1.51, CI=1.07-2.13, 0.019).
In conclusion, decision making on own healthcare among married women is still very low yet its necessary in improving health care attainment and curbing maternal and childhood mortality in this region. There fore interventions and policies to empower women need to be reinforced giving special attention to married women in remote areas through education, income generation opportunities to reduce dependency on their husbands | en_US |
