Health care seeking behaviour for children with acute childhood illnesses and its relating factors in sub-Saharan Africa: evidence from 24 countries

BACKGROUND: Childhood illnesses and mortality rates have declined over the past years in sub-Saharan African countries; however, under-five mortality is still high in the region. This study investigated the magnitude and factors associated with health care seeking behaviour for children with childhood illnesses in 24 sub-Saharan African countries. METHODS: We used secondary data from Demographic and Health Surveys (DHSs) conducted between 2013 and 2018 across the 24 sub-Saharan African countries. Binary logistic regression models were applied to identify the factors associated with health care seeking behaviour for children with acute childhood illnesses. The results were presented using adjusted odds ratios (aOR) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). RESULTS: Overall, 45% of children under-5 years with acute childhood illnesses utilized health care facilities. The factors associated with health care seeking behaviour for children with acute illnesses were sex of child, number of living children, education, work status, wealth index, exposure to media and distance to a health facility. CONCLUSIONS: Over half of mothers did not seek appropriate health care for under-five childhood illnesses. Effective health policy interventions are needed to enhance health care seeking behaviour of mothers for childhood illnesses in sub-Saharan African countries. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s41182-021-00385-1.