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Health Seeking Behavior among Mothers of Sick Children
1JF Institute of Health Science, Chapagaun, Lalitpur, Nepal.
Insights
Mothers in Nepal often seek healthcare for sick children, but delays and traditional healing practices persist. Maternal education and child’s sex significantly influence health-seeking behaviors, highlighting areas for intervention.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Public Health
- Sociology
Background:
- Nepal faces high infant (46/1000) and under-five (54/1000) mortality rates.
- Delayed or absent care-seeking significantly contributes to preventable child deaths.
- Timely access to health facilities can prevent numerous child fatalities.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the health-seeking behaviors of mothers with sick children.
- To identify factors influencing care decisions in children aged 0-59 months in Lalitpur, Nepal.
Main Methods:
- A descriptive study was conducted in Lele VDC, Lalitpur.
- A purposive sampling method yielded 102 mothers with sick children.
- Data were collected using semi-structured questionnaires.
Main Results:
- Pneumonia (62.7%), diarrhea (28%), and malnutrition (8.8%) were common childhood illnesses.
- 81.4% of mothers sought treatment, with 69% utilizing health facilities and 31% traditional healers.
- Maternal education (p=0.05), child's sex (p=0.004), and illness type (p=0.001) significantly correlated with health-seeking behavior.
Conclusions:
- While most mothers seek formal healthcare, a notable proportion consult traditional healers.
- Maternal education, child's sex, and the nature of the child's sickness are key determinants of care-seeking.
- Interventions should address barriers and promote timely access to appropriate medical services.
Background:
Infant and under-five mortality rate in Nepal are 46 and 54 deaths per 1,000 live births, respectively. These mortality indicates, one in every 22 Nepalese children dies before reaching age 1, and one in every 19 does not survive to his or her fifth birthday. Delay in seeking appropriate care and not seeking any care contributes to the large number of child deaths. Existing interventions could prevent many deaths among children if they are presented at health facility and timely care.
Methods:
A descriptive research was carried out in Lele VDC, ward no.7, Lalitpur. The objective of this study was to find out health seeking behavior among mothers of sick children. Non probability, purposive sampling method was used. Sample size was 102 mothers who had sick children from 0 to 59 months. A set of semi structured questionnaire was used to obtain the data.
Results:
The mean age of the respondent was 25.8 years and child was 29 months. Respondents' children who suffered with pneumonia, diarrhoea and malnutrition were 64(62.7%),29(28%), 9(8.8%) respectively. Majority 84(81.4%) mothers had sought treatment and among them 58(69%) sought treatment from health facility whereas 26(31%) sought treatment from traditional healer. There was significant relationship between education of the mother(p=0.05), sex of the child (p=0.004), type of sickness of children (p=0.001) of the mother and health seeking behaviour of mothers. However occupation of the mothers for seeking treatment (p=0.66) and treatment seeking at first (p=0.82) were not significant. So there was no relationship between occupation of the mothers and health seeking behaviour.
Conclusions:
Majority of the mothers sought treatment from health facility, yet around one fourth went at traditional healers. Education of the mother, sex of the child, sickness of child and mother's awareness are the factors affecting health seeking behavior of the mothers.
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