Context matters in understanding the vulnerability of women : perspectives from southwestern Uganda

The study examined healthcare utilization experiences of vulnerable women in relation to maternal newborn and child health (MNCH) services in rural southwestern Uganda. Findings show that traditional criteria of vulnerability were insufficient to identify categories of vulnerable women to properly target MNCH programming and service provision in resource-limited settings. The community’s own definitions of ‘vulnerable’ were more nuanced and context specific. Communities felt these categories could be recognized within their settings. Community members could identify who was vulnerable and who was not, based on their context