Care seeking for fatal illness episodes in Neonates: a population-based study in rural Bangladesh
Background. Poor neonatal health is a major contributor to under-five mortality in developing countries. A major constraint to effective neonatal survival programme has been the lack of population level data in developing countries. This study investigated the consultation patterns of caregivers dur...
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| Format: | Journal Article |
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BioMed Central
2011
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/17591 |
| _version_ | 1848749506271641600 |
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| author | Chowdhury, Hafizur Thompson, Sandra Ali, Mohammed Alam, N. Yunus, M. Streatfield, P. |
| author_facet | Chowdhury, Hafizur Thompson, Sandra Ali, Mohammed Alam, N. Yunus, M. Streatfield, P. |
| author_sort | Chowdhury, Hafizur |
| building | Curtin Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Background. Poor neonatal health is a major contributor to under-five mortality in developing countries. A major constraint to effective neonatal survival programme has been the lack of population level data in developing countries. This study investigated the consultation patterns of caregivers during neonatal fatal illness episodes in the rural Matlab sub-district of eastern Bangladesh. Methods. Neonatal deaths were identified through a population-based demographic surveillance system in Matlab ICDDR,B maternal and child health (MCH) project area and an adjoining government service area. Trained project staff administered a structured questionnaire on care seeking to mothers at home who had experienced a neonatal death. Univariate, bivariate and binary multivariate logistic regressions were performed to describe care seeking during the fatal illness episode.Results. Of the 365 deaths recorded during 2003 and 2004, 84% died in the early (0-7 days) neonatal period, with the remaining deaths occurring over the subsequent 8 to 28 days. The first resort of care by parents was a qualified doctor or paramedic in 37% of cases, followed by traditional and unqualified health care providers in 25%, while 38% sought no care. Thus, almost two thirds (63%) of neonates who died received only traditional and unqualified care or no care at all during their final illness episode. About 22% sought care from more than one provider, including 6% from 3 or more providers. Such plurality in care seeking was more likely among male infants, in the late neonatal period, and in the MCH project area. Conclusions. The high proportion of neonatal deaths that had received traditional care or no medical care in a rural area of Bangladesh highlights the need to develop community awareness about prompt medical care seeking for neonatal illnesses and to improve access to effective health care. Integration of traditional care providers into mainstream health programs should also be considered. |
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| format | Journal Article |
| id | curtin-20.500.11937-17591 |
| institution | Curtin University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T07:22:01Z |
| publishDate | 2011 |
| publisher | BioMed Central |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | curtin-20.500.11937-175912017-09-13T15:42:44Z Care seeking for fatal illness episodes in Neonates: a population-based study in rural Bangladesh Chowdhury, Hafizur Thompson, Sandra Ali, Mohammed Alam, N. Yunus, M. Streatfield, P. Background. Poor neonatal health is a major contributor to under-five mortality in developing countries. A major constraint to effective neonatal survival programme has been the lack of population level data in developing countries. This study investigated the consultation patterns of caregivers during neonatal fatal illness episodes in the rural Matlab sub-district of eastern Bangladesh. Methods. Neonatal deaths were identified through a population-based demographic surveillance system in Matlab ICDDR,B maternal and child health (MCH) project area and an adjoining government service area. Trained project staff administered a structured questionnaire on care seeking to mothers at home who had experienced a neonatal death. Univariate, bivariate and binary multivariate logistic regressions were performed to describe care seeking during the fatal illness episode.Results. Of the 365 deaths recorded during 2003 and 2004, 84% died in the early (0-7 days) neonatal period, with the remaining deaths occurring over the subsequent 8 to 28 days. The first resort of care by parents was a qualified doctor or paramedic in 37% of cases, followed by traditional and unqualified health care providers in 25%, while 38% sought no care. Thus, almost two thirds (63%) of neonates who died received only traditional and unqualified care or no care at all during their final illness episode. About 22% sought care from more than one provider, including 6% from 3 or more providers. Such plurality in care seeking was more likely among male infants, in the late neonatal period, and in the MCH project area. Conclusions. The high proportion of neonatal deaths that had received traditional care or no medical care in a rural area of Bangladesh highlights the need to develop community awareness about prompt medical care seeking for neonatal illnesses and to improve access to effective health care. Integration of traditional care providers into mainstream health programs should also be considered. 2011 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/17591 10.1186/1471-2431-11-88 BioMed Central fulltext |
| spellingShingle | Chowdhury, Hafizur Thompson, Sandra Ali, Mohammed Alam, N. Yunus, M. Streatfield, P. Care seeking for fatal illness episodes in Neonates: a population-based study in rural Bangladesh |
| title | Care seeking for fatal illness episodes in Neonates: a population-based study in rural Bangladesh |
| title_full | Care seeking for fatal illness episodes in Neonates: a population-based study in rural Bangladesh |
| title_fullStr | Care seeking for fatal illness episodes in Neonates: a population-based study in rural Bangladesh |
| title_full_unstemmed | Care seeking for fatal illness episodes in Neonates: a population-based study in rural Bangladesh |
| title_short | Care seeking for fatal illness episodes in Neonates: a population-based study in rural Bangladesh |
| title_sort | care seeking for fatal illness episodes in neonates: a population-based study in rural bangladesh |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/17591 |