Maternal and Neonatal Vulnerabilities Associated with Child Survival in Indonesia

Abstract

Background: Child mortality remains a major public health challenge in Indonesia despite improvements in maternal and child healthcare services. Various maternal, socioeconomic, reproductive, and neonatal factors may contribute to child survival disparities across regions in Indonesia. Objective: This study aimed to identify factors associated with child survival among women in Indonesia. Methods: This study employed a cross-sectional design using secondary data from the 2017 Indonesian Demographic and Health Survey (IDHS) women’s recode dataset (IDIR71FL). The study included 14,925 women aged 15–49 years who met the inclusion criteria. Weighting procedures were applied before analysis to ensure nationally representative estimates. Analyzed descriptive statistics were using to describe respondents’ characteristics, while chi-square tests and binary logistic regression analyses were conducted to identify factors associated with child survival. Crude Odds Ratios (COR) and Adjusted Odds Ratios (AOR) with 95% Confidence Intervals (CI) were reported. Results: Maternal age, education level, occupation, province, parity, maternal age at first birth, twin status, birth weight, and labor complications were significantly associated with child survival. Mothers with no formal education (AOR=2.96; 95% CI=1.32–6.64), parity ≥4 (AOR=3.45; 95% CI=2.08–5.70), twin births (AOR=2.45; 95% CI=1.26–4.76), low birth weight infants (AOR=3.16; 95% CI=2.28–4.37), and labor complications (AOR=1.47; 95% CI=1.10–1.96) had higher odds of child mortality. Conclusion: Child survival in Indonesia is influenced by maternal socio-demographic, reproductive, and neonatal factors. Strengthening maternal and neonatal healthcare services, particularly among high-risk mothers and disadvantaged regions, is essential to improve child survival outcomes in Indonesia.