[Families and children confronting health care practices in Algeria]

This paper describes results of a study on perceptions and behaviors of families concerning care of sick children, within the context of the Algerian health system as it functioned in two zones, Aïn Taya and Tigzirt, in 1991. One hundred twenty families in the two zones were interviewed at home on the health seeking process during a recent illness episode of an under-5 child. Results show families make extensive use of curative health services for children, with apparently little use of traditional medicine, and only initial use of home remedies. Access to public services is often difficult due to distance, while incompetence, long waiting times, favoritism, lack of material, and poor communication with health personnel constitute families' main complaints. Use of private physicians, in spite of costs, is considered a gain in time, and rapport and communication are better. Results of the research among these families are discussed in relation to those from a study carried out at the same time among health professionals, results which show deep dissatisfaction on their part as to the means put at their disposal and with the quality of relationships maintained with the administration on the one hand, and with the client population on the other. Improving the public health sector in Algeria will entail greater investment in the quality of peripheral services, and training of health personnel in better communication skills.