Utilization of rehabilitation services by rural households with disabled preschool children

We conducted this study to find the extent of utilization of services and, identification of factors which determine the use of such services in rural families with disabled preschool children. Participants included disabled children in a Unicef supported cross sectional survey conducted in a rural ICDS block. The overall proportion of non-utilization of services was found to be 52.1 % with the maximum non-utilization among the households with speech and hearing disability. The important explanatary variables predicting non-utilization were low socioeconomic status (OR 4.6; 95 % CI 1.27-17.68), poor educational level of father (OR 5.95; 95 % CI 1.50-23.59) and poor acceptability of services (OR 36.2; 95 % CI 8.73-150.2). This study has implications for planning and organization of easily accessible, quality rehabilitation services in the community.