Patronage Pattern and Accessibility of Healthcare Facilities in Urban Slums and Informal Settlements in Ibadan Metropolis

Abstract

Slums and informal settlements are residential areas physically and socially disintegrated. In spite of this, inadequate health-related data on slum areas and informal settlements has led to inappropriate and unrealistic allocation of healthcare resources by the public and private health providers. This study investigates the patronage pattern and accessibility of healthcare facilities to residents of urban slums and Informal settlements in Ibadan Metropolis, a rapidly growing urban area in Nigeria facing challenges related to urbanization and healthcare infrastructure. Data were collected from both primary and secondary sources. Structured questionnaire was administered on 1,389 residents of the slummy neighbourhoods and informal settlements in Ibadan metropolis, and obtained data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Results revealed that out of 109 neighbourhoods, 42.1% were categorized as slummy neighbourhoods, 36.7% as slums/informal settlements, while 21.2% were informal settlement using slummy and informality conditions respectively. Results revealed that distance to health facility (β= -0.353, p<0.05), educational qualification (β=-0.063, p<0.05) and household size (β= -0.052, p<0.05) had an inverse relationship with patronage of health facilities, while age (β=0.086, p< 0.05) had a positive relationship. It was also revealed that access to PHC and dispensary/clinic in slummy neighbouhoods and slum/informal settlements is higher compared to informal settlements in the study area. The study therefore recommends implementation of slum improvement program for the slummy and slums/informal neighbourhoods, provision of additional healthcare facilities to be located especially in the slummy neighbourhoods and informal settlements to ensure equitable distribution.