Factors that influence household health care utilization patterns in two districts of Zambia : a rural - urban comparative evaluation

• Main Author: Nkosi, Moremi Eric
• Other Authors: Okorafor, Okore
• Format: Dissertation
• Language: English
• Published: University of Cape Town 2014
• Subjects: Public Health
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/9345

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 111-116). === This research project was undertaken with the primary objective of determining whether there are differential household health care utilization patterns between rural and urban areas in Zambia and what factors, if any, are responsible for such spatial variations. The factors considered in this study include: the gender of the household head, age of individual household members, religious affiliation of the household, the marital status of the household head, the size of the household, the educational status of the household head, the household head's employment status, and the socio-economic status of the household. The data was collected using a household health survey with questionnaires administered to the household head. A total of 660 households (3,150 persons) were sampled, 320 households (1,696 persons) in Chipata District and 340 households (1,454 persons) in Ndola District. The data included information on socio-economic and demographic factors that have been regularly considered in the theoretical literature and empirical evidence as impacting upon household and individual decision-making when it comes to utilization of both formal and informal care. A multinomial logistic regression model was used to analyse the data quantitatively in Stata® Version 8.0 software. Close to a quarter ofthe overall sample admitted to suffering an illness or injury in the 4-week period preceding the interview. Self-care at the household level was the most frequently reported type of care chosen for minor and moderate illnesses or injuries (35.80 percent). Bivariate analysis and the multinomial logistic regression results indicate that the variables considered not only produce differential effects on household health care utilization patterns in both districts but also that the effects are different depending on location of the household. The results from our sample analyses show that household religious affiliation (Christianity) is negatively associated with formal health care utilization in the urban area while the age of the individual increases the household's utilization of formal and informal care, and the gender of the household head (female), hislher marital status, educational attainment, and employment status all have a positive impact on formal health care use in the rural area.