Browsing by Author "Ajit Kumar Jaiswal"

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Epidemiology of disability and access to disability support and rehabilitation services in India: A secondary data analysis of the National Sample Survey (2018)
(BMJ Publishing Group, 2025) Moonis Mirza; Vandana Esht; Madhur Verma; Bajarang Bahadur; Ajit Kumar Jaiswal; Manoj Alagarajan; Rajesh Kakkar
Objective The aim of this study was to examine the epidemiology of disability in India and assess access to disability support and rehabilitation services by people with disability (PWD). Design This study is a secondary analysis of data from the 76th round of the National Sample Survey (2018), focusing on disability in India. Setting The survey employed a stratified two-stage sampling design based on Census 2011, covering all states and union territories of India. Villages and urban blocks were selected in the first stage, while households were chosen in the second stage across rural and urban areas. Participants The survey included data from a population of 576 796 individuals residing in 118 152 households from 8992 village/urban blocks (5378 rural villages and 3614 urban blocks). The analysis focused on 107 125 individuals (61 707 male and 45 305 female) who reported at least one disability. Outcome measures The primary outcome was € any disability'. Secondary outcomes included access to disability support and rehabilitation services, which assessed difficulties in accessing public buildings and transport, loss of employment after disability, availability of government support, enrolment in special schools, and possession of a disability certificate. Results The overall weighted disability prevalence was 2.2%, with significant disparities across sociodemographic characteristics. Among PWD, 45.9% of those who acquired disability after birth were aged between 15 years and 59 years, and 20.8% received no government aid. About 40% of PWD struggled to use public transport, and 57.7% had difficulties accessing public buildings. Additionally, 60.7% reported job loss due to disability, and 69.6% lacked a disability certificate. Conclusion This study highlights disparities faced by PWD in accessing disability support and rehabilitation services. There is an urgent need for concerted efforts to minimise such experiences. This will help us enhance the well-being and participation of PWD and empower them to contribute to society with their true potential. © Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2025. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ Group.
Individual-and Community-Level Determinants of Maternal Healthcare Utilization in Afghanistan
(Springer Nature, 2025) Aditya P. Singh; Sayed Attaullah Saeedzai; Ajit Kumar Jaiswal; Shivani Paratap Singh; Rakesh Chandra
To increase the utilization of maternal healthcare services, the factors that affect must first be identified. However, national-level studies on this topic in the country are lacking. Therefore, this chapter aims to identify and examine the factors affecting maternal healthcare utilization in Afghanistan. This chapter uses data from the first Demographic and Health Survey conducted in Afghanistan in 2015 to examine the factors associated with the utilization of maternal healthcare services among ever-married women (aged 15–49) who have had at least one birth during the 5 years preceding the survey. Multilevel binary logistic regression analyses were carried out to understand the net effect of predictor variables on the utilization of maternity care. The results show that the utilization of maternal health services is considerably low in Afghanistan. Only about 18%, 48%, and 33% Afghan mothers had availed themselves of antenatal care (ANC), safe delivery, and postnatal care (PNC) services, respectively. Findings have indicated a considerable amount of variation in the use of maternity care depending on education, wealth, ethnicity, parity, and place of residence. Maternal care in Afghanistan is associated with a woman and her partner’s education, ethnicity, wealth, parity, exposure to mass media, and place of residence. The chapter finds a strong association between the utilization of antenatal care and both safe delivery and postnatal care. Exposure to mass media and mothers’ participation in health expenditure decision-making are positively associated with maternal care utilization in Afghanistan. These results suggest the need to adopt a targeted approach to reduce differentials in the utilization of maternal care in Afghanistan. In the short term, the government should focus on promoting antenatal care and the use of mass media. In the long term, the government should promote girl’s education and reduce wealth inequalities. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2024.