Understanding Child Deaths Through Social Autopsy
Author Information
Author(s): Karin Källander, Daniel Kadobera, Thomas N. Williams, Rikke Thoft Nielsen, Lucy Yevoo, Aloysius Mutebi, Jonas Akpakli, Clement Narh, Margaret Gyapong, Alberta Amu, Peter Waiswa
Primary Institution: Department of Health Policy, Planning & Management, School of Public Health, Makerere University, Uganda
Hypothesis
Can a standardized social autopsy tool improve understanding of the causes of child mortality?
Conclusion
The study found significant delays in care-seeking behavior and case management in both Uganda and Ghana, highlighting the need for improved awareness and health system responses.
Supporting Evidence
- 96% of children in Uganda had at least one severe symptom recognized before death.
- 32% of children in Uganda were first treated at home despite severe symptoms.
- 80% of children in Ghana were treated at home before seeking outside care.
- Delays in care-seeking were primarily due to inadequate case management in Uganda.
- Household delays were the main obstacle to treatment in Ghana.
Takeaway
This study looked at why children under 5 die and found that many parents don't recognize when their child is very sick or wait too long to get help.
Methodology
The study used a social autopsy tool to collect data from caretakers of deceased children in two health and demographic surveillance sites in Uganda and Ghana.
Potential Biases
Recall bias may affect the reliability of the data collected from caretakers.
Limitations
The study relied on caretaker recall, which may introduce bias, and did not analyze the sequence of symptoms or the actual quality of care provided.
Participant Demographics
Children aged 29 days to 5 years, with a mean age of 17 months in Uganda and 21.7 months in Ghana; 48% female in Uganda and 43% female in Ghana.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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