Table 4. Illness, care seeking and caregiving behaviour during fatal illnesses among infants in their first year of life, Ghana, 2010–2011.
| Variable | No. (%) |
P | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Non-LBW infants (n = 422) | LBW infants (n = 262) | ||
| Duration of fatal illness in days | |||
| < 1 | 21 (5.0) | 12 (4.6) | |
| 1–7 | 216 (51.2) | 142 (54.2) | |
| > 7 | 185 (43.8) | 108 (41.2) | 0.7440 |
| Care sought for infant? | |||
| No | 55 (13.0) | 60 (22.9) | |
| Yes | 367 (87.0) | 202 (77.1) | 0.0010 |
| Days ill before care soughta | |||
| < 1 | 135 (36.8) | 71 (35.2) | |
| 1–3 | 174 (47.4) | 86 (42.6) | |
| > 3 | 58 (15.8) | 45 (22.3) | 0.1510 |
| PMC soughta | |||
| No | 24 (6.5) | 29 (14.4) | |
| Yes | 343 (93.5) | 173 (85.6) | 0.0020 |
| Sought care elsewherea | |||
| No | 228 (62.1) | 116 (57.4) | |
| Yes | 139 (37.9) | 86 (42.6) | 0.2730 |
| Caregiving for infants for whom PMC was soughtb | |||
| Admitted to a health facility? | |||
| No | 179 (52.2) | 82 (47.4) | |
| Yes | 164 (47.8) | 91 (52.6) | 0.3040 |
| Medical therapy received? | |||
| No | 52 (15.2) | 38 (22.0) | |
| Yesc | 291 (84.8) | 135 (78.0) | 0.0540 |
| Died in health facility? | |||
| No | 162 (47.2) | 88 (50.9) | |
| Yes | 181 (52.8) | 85 (49.1) | 0.4350 |
LBW: low-birth-weight; PMC: professional medical care.
a The denominators for the percentages shown were the numbers of infants for whom care was sought: 367 for the non-LBW and 202 for the LBW.
b The denominators for the percentages shown were the numbers of infants for whom professional medical care was sought: 343 for the non-LBW and 173 for the LBW.
c Medicine was prescribed and/or surgery occurred.