Morbidity Pattern and Health Seeking Behaviour among the Geriatric People of Rural Areas of Chattogram District in Bangladesh

Abstract

Background: Aging is inevitable process of life. In Bangladesh, the number of older people is growing rapidly due to falling fertility and increased expectancy of life. Objective: We aimed to determine the prevalence of self-reported morbidity, to describe the morbidity pattern, health-seeking behavior, and socio-demographic profile, among the rural elderly people of the Chattogram district of Bangladesh. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted at 16 villages under 8 unions of the Mirsarai upazilla of the Chattogram district conveniently. Households were selected by systematic random sampling. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews from 200 participants. We used a semi-structured questionnaire. It was divided into two parts: questions related to socio demographic characteristics, questions related to morbidity pattern and health seeking behavior. Descriptive statistics and chi-square test were done. Data was cleaned and prepared with Microsoft Excel and analysis was performed using SPSS, version 23. Results: Mean age of the respondents was 66.5 years. Only (10.5%) had no morbidity and more than two-thirds (70%) of the respondents had multimorbidity. Most common morbidities identified among them were osteoarthritis (66.5%) and hypertension (51%) followed by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (29.5%), ischemic heart disease (25%), Diabetes mellitus (21%), etc. Among them, (80%) seek treatment for their health problems. The majority (27%) preferred going to the government hospital and one-fourth (25%) preferred a private doctor. Among older people not seeking treatment for their medical condition, a majority (47.5%) said they didn’t feel the need to go to a doctor and (35%) said that they had financial problems. Conclusion: A high prevalence of morbidity among the elderly population is found, suggesting that geriatric care should become an integral part of primary health care. Regular screening and health education need to be.........