Do health systems delay the treatment of poor children? A qualitative study of child deaths in rural Tanzania.

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Abstract

Child mortality remains one of the major public-health problems in Tanzania. Delays in receiving and accessing adequate care contribute to these high rates. The literature on public health often focuses on the role of mothers in delaying treatment, suggesting that they contact the health system too late and that they prefer to treat their children at home, a perspective often echoed by health workers. Using the three-delay methodology, this study focus on the third phase of the model, exploring the delays experienced in receiving adequate care when mothers with a sick child contact a health-care facility. The overall objective is to analyse specific structural factors embedded in everyday practices at health facilities in a district in Tanzania which cause delays in the treatment of poor children and to discuss possible changes to institutions and social technologies.
Original languageEnglish
JournalB M C Health Services Research
Volume13
Issue number67
Pages (from-to)1-10
Number of pages10
ISSN1472-6963
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2013

Keywords

  • Faculty of Social Sciences
  • Health systems
  • Delay
  • Child mortality
  • Tanzania
  • Treatment seeking
  • Doctor–patient relationship

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