Access and Utilization of ICT for Delivery of Sexual and Reproductive Health Services to Women With Disabilities in Nairobi City County

Abstract

The passing of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) was a momentous milestone in the lives of persons with disabilities. Member states involved ratified and promised to enhance inclusion of persons with disabilities. However, this has not been easily adhered to. Utilization of Information Communication and Technology (ICT) to champion similar agenda has been noted to have gained momentum across nations but developing nations are still struggling with low rates of ICT use in the push for service delivery on Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) for and among women with disabilities. The situation is not different in Kenya. Thus this study was conducted with the general intention of understanding the utilization of ICT in delivery of sexual and reproductive health services to women with disabilities in Nairobi City County. This county was selected because women with disabilities residing within it are positioned such that they can quickly embrace technology compared to their peers in the rural areas and other urban centers. The specific objectives of the study were: to examine the nature of reproductive health needs of women with disabilities in Nairobi City County; to examine the appropriate ICT characteristics in delivery of sexual and reproductive health services to women with disabilities; to establish the utility of ICT in delivery of sexual and reproductive health services to women with disabilities in Nairobi City County and assessing overall impact of ICT in facilitating access to reproductive health services amongst women with disabilities. Questionnaires comprising both open and closed ended questions was used, the researcher collected primary data from 75 women with disabilities across the 17 sub-counties of Nairobi City County. Purposive sampling of 75 respondents was done in this study. Complimentary data was also collected from three focus group discussion involving 8 participants. In addition, data was gathered from key informant interviews. Descriptive analysis was employed for the data and presented through frequency tables using head counts and percentages. The results revealed high levels of SRH services awareness among women with disabilities. Access to various SRH services was also noted to be high. The findings also indicated that use of ICT in delivering SRH services is important as evidenced by high adoption rate. More so, such ICT devices used were required to be easily available; affordable, accessible, acceptable and of high quality. Finally, the results revealed high positive impact of ICT aiding access to sexual and reproductive services on the part of women with disabilities. For the researchers’ recommendation in view of the findings, SRH services should not only be available but affordable and of quality but it will be all inclusive for women with disabilities thus vital for the development process.