Improving reproductive health service utilization through social health worker empowerment for women of childbearing age in the Talang Mamak indigenous, Indragiri Hulu Regency

Abstract

Women still face barriers to accessing services and resources related to reproductive health. These barriers remain prevalent at various stages of a woman's life, from adolescence to menopause. The presence of obstacles in providing reproductive health services can lead to serious health threats, including teenage pregnancy, abortion, sexually transmitted infections, and maternal mortality. This study employs a research method with a pre-experimental approach using a one-group pretest-posttest design. The sample was selected using systematic random sampling, consisting of 170 respondents who are women of reproductive age (WRA) between 15 and 49 years old. The respondents were indigenous Talang Mamak people residing in Rakit Kulim District. Data analysis was conducted using the Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test with a statistical significance test at a 95% confidence interval (CI) and a significance threshold of p < 0.05. The social health worker empowerment intervention significantly affects the knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of women of reproductive age (WRA) in utilizing reproductive health services, with a probability value of p = 0.001. A total of 75% of respondents utilized reproductive health services, with the following details: contraceptive counseling (25%), contraceptive insertion services (15%), pregnancy counseling and anemia screening (25%), postnatal visits (20%), and counseling for other reproductive health issues (15%). Empowering social health workers improves the utilization of reproductive health services among women of reproductive age.