Looking at an underserved population: Social determinants of health in Angola

Abstract

The objective was to analyze the social determinants of health in Angola. This is a documentary, exploratory and quantitative research, carried out with data from the 2015-2016 Multiple Indicators and Health Survey in Angola. The analyzed variables were: access to drinking water sources; appropriate sanitary facilities; access to electricity; educational level; access to jobs; child mortality rate; prenatal consultations; and vaccination coverage. It was observed that 45.2% of households do not have access to adequate water sources for drinking; 52.9% use inappropriate sanitation facilities, mainly in rural areas; 31% of men aged 15 to 49 were unemployed; 42% of households had access to electricity; 22% of women and 8% of men aged 15 to 49 have never attended school; the estimated infant mortality rate was 44 deaths for every 1000 live births; 44.1% of pregnant women with lower socioeconomic status did not undergo any prenatal consultation; 18.3% of children aged 12 to 23 months and 21% aged 24 to 35 months did not receive any vaccine. It is concluded that there are large gaps in access to social determinants of health, highlighting the need for government efforts in partnership with international organizations to improve the population’s health conditions.