Average Time Spent in Referral Process and its Determinants Among Clients of Maternal and Child Health Service in 2 Districts of Jimma Zone, Ethiopia

Abstract

Background: The time spent between referring and receiving health facilities is an important determinant of the outcome of the referred patients/clients especially among women in low-income countries due to poor access to early and appropriate referrals. Thus, the aim of this study is to assess the average time spent between referring and service utilization at receiving health facility. Methods: A cross-sectional study was employed by using time and motion approach. Structured questionnaire and observation checklist were used for collecting data. SPSS 21 version was used for data analysis and binary and multivariable logistic regression analysis was carried out to identify a variable that has a significant association on the basis of OR, 95% confidence interval, and a P value of less than .05. Result: A total of 266 women participated in the study with the mean age of the study population is 24.65 (±5.03) years. The majority, (223 (83.8%)) of the participants came for maternal health services and more than half, (143 (53.8%)) of the respondents were self-referrals. Among the referred cases, the main reason for the referral was for further evaluation and management. Women spent a maximum of 540 min on the way to arrive at receiving health facility. Residence and distance were the predictor variables for average time spent. Conclusion: In general, women wait a maximum of one and half hours to contact health care providers for assessment and more than two-fifth of the women wait more than 3 h to get the service at receiving health facility.