Skip to main content

ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Public Health and Nutrition
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1495667
This article is part of the Research Topic Health and Nutrition in The First 1000 Days of Life View all 6 articles

Impact of Peer Interaction on Maternal Health Service Utilization in Rural Northwest China

Provisionally accepted
Liuchun Xiang Liuchun Xiang 1,2Dan Li Dan Li 2Junhao Wu Junhao Wu 1Jun Chen Jun Chen 1Jie Yang Jie Yang 1*Haisong Nie Haisong Nie 2
  • 1 Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, China
  • 2 Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Fuchu, Japan

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background: Effective use of health services by pregnant and postpartum woman (PPWs) is crucial to maternal and child health. Most maternal deaths are attributed to inadequate maternal health services, especially in rural areas. As a vulnerable group, rural PPWs can effectively prevent and reduce maternal and infant health risk factors through whole-process health management and ensure the health and safety of mothers and infants. Therefore, improving the utilization rate of rural maternal health services is a key issue that needs to be addressed urgently. This study aimed to explore the influence of peer interaction on the utilization of maternal health services in rural areas and the mediating effect of maternal health service knowledge.Based on cross-sectional data of 821 PPWs in rural northwest China. This study used propensity score matching (PSM) to analyze the effects of peer interaction (PI) on maternal health service utilization, including maternal system management rate (Y1), prenatal screening rate (Y2), and postpartum visit rate (Y3). In addition, the mediating role of maternal health service knowledge between peer interaction and health service utilization was empirically tested.The findings highlight the important role of peer interaction in improving the utilization rate of maternal health services in rural northwest China. The study found that peer interaction significantly improved the maternal system management rate, prenatal screening rate, and postpartum visit rate. At the same time, peer interaction enhances knowledge of maternal health services , which plays a key role in improving maternal health behaviors.Through experience sharing and knowledge exchange among peers, understanding of health services can be enhanced, and positive health behaviors can be promoted. Policymakers and healthcare providers should integrate peer support programs into existing maternal health initiatives and fully use social media and community resources to create interactive platforms for maternal and infant knowledge that combine online and offline. By actively promoting peer interaction and experience sharing, these initiatives can maximize the positive role of peer support, increase the utilization rate of health services, and effectively ensure their safety.

    Keywords: peer interaction1, pregnant and postpartum women2, maternal health service3, propensity score matching4, rural area5

    Received: 13 Sep 2024; Accepted: 13 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Xiang, Li, Wu, Chen, Yang and Nie. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Jie Yang, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, 710062, Shaanxi Province, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.