Determinants of delay in care seeking among children under five with fever in Dodoma region, central Tanzania: a cross-sectional study

Malaria Journal

Research

Razack Lokina¹  Telemu Kassile²  Bruno P Mmbando³  Phares Mujinja⁴ 

[1] College of Social Sciences, University of Dar es Salaam, PO Box 35045, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania;Faculty of Science, Sokoine University of Agriculture, PO Box 3038, Morogoro, Tanzania;National Institute for Medical Research, Tanga Research Centre, PO Box 5004, Tanga, Tanzania;School of Public Health and Social Sciences, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, PO Box 65015, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania;

关键词: Care-seeking behaviour;    Delay;    Febrile illnesses;    Fever;    Malaria;    Tanzania;   

DOI  :  10.1186/1475-2875-13-348

 received in 2014-06-08, accepted in 2014-08-28,  发布年份 2014

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundEarly diagnosis and timely treatment of malaria is recognized as a fundamental element to the control of the disease. Although access to health services in Tanzania is improved, still many people seek medical care when it is too late or not at all. This study aimed to determine factors associated with delay in seeking treatment for fever among children under five in Tanzania.MethodsA three-stage cluster sampling design was used to sample households with children under five in Dodoma region, central Tanzania between October 2010 and January 2011. Information on illness and health-seeking behaviours in the previous four weeks was collected using a structured questionnaire. A multivariable logistic regression was used to investigate determinants of delay in treatment-seeking behaviour while accounting for sample design.ResultsA total of 287 under-five children with fever whose caretakers sought medical care were involved in the study. Of these, 55.4% were taken for medical care after 24 hours of onset of fever. The median time of delay in fever care seeking was two days. Children who lived with both biological parents were less likely to be delayed for medical care compared to those with either one or both of their biological parents absent from home (OR = 0.42, 95% CI: 0.24, 0.74). Children from households with two to three under-five children were more likely to be delayed for medical care compared to children from households with only one child (OR = 1.54, 95% CI: 1.04, 2.26). Also, children living in a distance ≥5 kilometres from the nearest health facility were about twice (95% CI: 1.11, 2.72) as likely to delay to be taken for medical care than those in the shorter distances.ConclusionLiving with non-biological parents, high number of under-fives in household, and long distance to the nearest health facility were important factors for delay in seeking healthcare. Programmes to improve education on equity in social services, family planning, and access to health facilities are required for better healthcare and development of children.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© Kassile et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. 2014