Revista de Bioanálise e Biomedicina

Introduction: Health-seeking behavior is a function not only by the availability of health facilities and other sources of healthcare but also the motivation and ability of individuals to seek medical treatment. Treatment or careseeking is highly variable by illness symptoms, mothers or caregiver’s perception of illness as well as cultural and societal perception of child in care in sub-region
Objectives: To assess health seeking behavior of mothers or primary caregivers and associated factors for fewer than five children with illness attending Bake Jama health center, Nekemte, East Wollega, Oromia Regional State, Ethiopia 2017.
Method: Institutional based cross-sectional study design was conducted. A total of 243 responds with 100% response rate was participating in the study. Pretest was conducted before actual time of data collection. Consecutive sampling was used to select the participants. Data was interred SPSS version 20 for further analysis and summarization. Descriptive statistic’s was used to describe socio-demographic characteristics of participants and factors related to illness of under five children and health seeking of mothers or primary caregivers.
Results: A total of 243 study respondents with a response rate of (100%) of which 47 (19.3%) of mothers or primary care givers have child sickness prior to this contact. The mean age of mothers was (28.35 ± 5.8) SD year and of the children was 16.4 ± 10.173 months. Most of the children’s mothers or primary caregivers come during time data collection were found between age group of 12-23 months 42.4%. Seeking health care after child sickness of among the respondents indicates 67.08% visit health facility after 3 days and above of infection.
Conclusion and Recommendation: Significant number of children 19.3% of children had an illness prior to this visit. They’re still a major challenge and treatment seeking behavior of mothers or primary care giver like that giving medication available at home, and traditional medicine which have a major impact over the health of children. Accordingly, we want to recommend health extension workers to work on sign of child illness and early identification and treatment seeking and type of childhood treatment.