The association between sanitation and infant mortality in Uganda

Abstract

This study was aimed at exploring the association between sanitation and infant mortality in Uganda. The study therefore analysed infant mortality in Uganda using 2016 data from Uganda Demographic and Health Survey.

The study analysed the influence of independent variables on the dependent variable which is infant mortality. These factors included mother’s age, religion, residence region, mother's education level, wealth status, breastfeeding status, household size, type of toilet facility, and water source. Descriptive analysis for these variables to determine their influence on infant mortality was done.

The majority of the mothers interviewed were ages 20-24 years. 84.99% of the babies were breastfed. A majority of the mothers attained primary education, this stood at 61.94% .48.69% of the mothers were poor. 29.52% of the mothers were registered as the highest in Eastern Uganda. 82.42% of the interviewed mothers live in the rural parts of the country. 40.76% of the mothers interviewed were Catholics. 18.25% of these women lived in households with 9 people. 76.95% of the mothers had access to improved sources of water and 70.56% of the women had access to non-improved toilet facilities.

The second level of analysis uses chi square tests to establish the relationship between the dependent variable and independent variables, a highly significant association was found to exist between infant mortality and mother’s age, Breastfeeding status, Education level, household size and toilet facility being significant with p-value<0.005. No significant association was found to exist between infant mortality and wealth status, region, residence and religion.

Some of the recommendations that were made include; The government and other stakeholders concerned with health should endeavor to sensitize the public on having at least some form of toilet facility and keep away from the habit of having to share a toilet facility since it was only those toilet facilities shared that were highly significant with infant mortality. Heath workers should sensitize mother on the importance of breastfeeding their babies in order to reduce on the number of death associated with breastfeeding, it’s an alarming rate of 80.48% of those that didn’t breastfeed die. The ministry of education and the ministry of health should work hand in hand and ensure that more emphasis is placed on the importance of education especially that of the girl child if we are to see a reduction in the rates of infant mortality in the near future