Relatives’ advice and health care-seeking behaviour in Oman

Ahmed Al-Mandhari, Samir Al-Adawi*, Ibrahim Al-Zakwani, Mohammed Al-Shafaee, Liyam Eloul

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

10 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Objectives: It has been well established that pathways to care are considerably modified by local, social and psychological characteristics as well as the doctor-patient relationship. Scant attention has been paid to the role of family advice in care-seeking. In Omani society, traditional family values and a collective mindset are the norm rather than the exception. This paper examines how family advice affects the trajectory of care seeking. Methodology: During 2006-2007, data was collected through face-to-face interviews among a randomised sample of patients seeking medical consultation in various primary health care centres in the northern region of Oman. This study enrolled a total of 493 patients. The association between the advice of family members as a reason to seek health care and other predictors was analysed using multivariable logistic regression. Results: The data suggest that the advice of family members in care-seeking is strongly associated with gender, education, history of chronic illness, previous exposure to traditional medicine, and health education, as well as the history of immunisation. Conclusion: These findings suggest that the advice of family members remains a strong catalyst for care-seeking in Oman. The psychosocial factors affecting care-seeking leading to underutilisation of services or otherwise are discussed.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)264-271
Number of pages8
JournalSultan Qaboos University Medical Journal
Volume9
Issue number3
Publication statusPublished - Dec 2009

Keywords

  • Arab/Islamic
  • Care-seeking behavior
  • Clinical population
  • Oman
  • Relatives’ advice

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Medicine

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Relatives’ advice and health care-seeking behaviour in Oman'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this