Ülke Gelir Gruplarına Göre Anne ve Çocuk Sağlığının Değerlendirilmesi: Tanımlayıcı Bir Çalışma

Abstract

Objective: The economic situation of countries is one of the important determinants of health. The aim of this study is to evaluate the socioeconomic inequalities in maternal and child health using the indicators of maternal and child health of countries by World Bank's income classification. Material and Methods: In the research, 166 countries were included. The data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics (Ver. 20). The Kruskal-Wallis H test was used to analyze whether variables about maternal and child health differ according to country income groups. The significance level was accepted as p<0.05. Mann-Whitney U test was used to understand from which groups the difference originated. Results: As a result of this study, it was determined that maternal and child health variables differed statistically significantly between country groups according to the World Bank income classification. Conclusion: Using the World Bank's income classification, this study highlights socioeconomic inequalities in maternal and child health. Although very serious risks in maternal and child health are not observed in high-income and upper-middle-income countries, there remain problems, particularly in low-income and lower-middleincome countries. The results show that children in low-income countries have more limited access to important health interventions such as vaccines and medical care. Eliminating inequalities in maternal and child health should be seen as a necessity for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Global cooperation is considered necessary to reduce socioeconomic inequalities in maternal and child health. International organizations are expected to support these countries with seriously aid.