Table 3.
Symptoms children presented with and reasons caretakers gave for having used government or private providers
| Variable | Government | Drug shops & private clinics |
Crude OR (95% CI) |
p-value |
Adjusted OR (95% CI) |
p-value |
| Presenting symptom * | n = 151 (%) | n = 286 (%) | ||||
| Cough | 83 (55.0) | 138 (48.3) | 1.31 (0.88 – 1.95) | 0.182 | N/A | |
| Running nose | 105 (69.5) | 205 (71.7) | 0.90 (0.59 – 1.39) | 0.640 | N/A | |
| Difficulty in breathing | 30 (19.9) | 62 (21.7) | 0.90 (0.55 – 1.46) | 0.660 | N/A | |
| Fast breathing | 18 (11.9) | 52 (18.2) | 0.61 (0.34 – 1.09) | 0.090 | 0.67 (0.32 – 1.40) | 0.284 |
| Convulsions | 9 (6.0) | 22 (7.7) | 0.76 (0.34 – 1.70) | 0.503 | N/A | |
| Pallor | 4 (2.7) | 11 (3.9) | 0.68 (0.21 – 2.18) | 0.514 | N/A | |
| Diarrhoea | 49 (32.5) | 67 (23.4) | 1.57 (1.01 – 2.44) | 0.042 † | 0.98 (0.54 – 1.79) | 0.947 |
| Vomiting | 44 (29.1) | 56 (19.6) | 1.69 (1.07 – 2.67) | 0.024 † | 2.07 (1.10 – 3.89) | 0.024 ‡ |
| Perception of provider* | n = 151 (%) | n = 286 (%) | ||||
| Conduct of health provider | 51 (33.8) | 53 (18.6) | 2.23 (1.41 – 3.53) | <0.001 † | 1.70 (0.94 – 3.08) | 0.077 |
| Qualification of health provider | 90 (56.6) | 27 (9.5) | 14.10 (7.67 – 25.92) | <0.001 † | 10.32 (5.84 – 18.26) | <0.001 ‡ |
| Experience of health provider | 65 (43.3) | 50 (17.5) | 3.59 (2.26 – 5.71) | <0.001 † | 1.93 (1.07 – 3.48) | 0.030 ‡ |
| Provider is polite | 6 (4.0) | 23 (8.1) | 0.47 (0.19 – 1.19) | 0.103 | N/A | |
| Good equipment | 44 (29.1) | 22 (7.7) | 4.92 (2.74 – 8.81) | <0.001 † | 1.88 (0.88 – 4.02) | 0.103 |
| Good infrastructure | 20 (13.3) | 14 (4.9) | 2.96 (1.43 – 6.09) | 0.002 † | 1.31 (0.50 – 3.43) | 0.576 |
| Treatment being cheap | 58 (38.4) | 88 (30.9) | 1.40 (0.92 – 2.11) | 0.113 | N/A | |
| Provider is nearby | 68 (45.0) | 205 (71.9) | 0.32 (0.21 – 0.49) | <0.001 † | 0.62 (0.36 – 1.06) | 0.080 |
| Easier to get more treatment there | 37 (24.5) | 58 (20.4) | 1.27 (0.79 – 2.03) | 0.318 | N/A | |
| To get first aid | 9 (6.0) | 47 (16.5) | 0.32 (0.15 – 0.68) | 0.002 † | 0.20 (0.08 – 0.52) | 0.001 ‡ |
The reference category was the government facilities.
* Multiple answers were given for the presenting symptom or perception of provider.
† Significant at bivariate analysis.
‡ Significant at multivariable analysis.
N/A stands for Not Applicable. It is for those variables whose p ≥ 1 and were hence not included in the multivariable analysis.