Osuji Samuel Chibueze¹*, Nwoke Eunice Anyalewechi², Ibe Sally N Onyeka², Agwah Eunice Ifeyinwa² and Udujih GO²

¹Department of Public Health, School of Health Technology, Federal University of Technology, Owerri, Imo State, Department of Healthcare Missions and Research, Sagre Foundation Inc., Nigeria
²Department of Public Health, School of Health Technology, Federal University of Technology, Owerri, Imo State, Nigeria

*Corresponding Author: Osuji Samuel Chibueze, Department of Public Health, School of Health Technology, Federal University of Technology, Owerri, Imo State, Department of Healthcare Missions and Research, Sagre Foundation Inc., Nigeria.

Received: May 31, 2023; Published: June 16, 2023

Abstract

Objective: This study was aimed to determine the eye health seeking behaviour among adults in Imo State, Nigeria.

Methods: In a population-based study where a multistage sampling technique was employed to sample three thousand seven hundred and eighty (3,780) participants from selected community clusters in nine local government areas comprising 30% of the total local government areas of Imo State, proportionately drawn from the three senatorial zones of the State. A well-structured questionnaire was employed to obtain data from the adult population aged 20 years and above from October 2020 – November 2021, with all ethical requirements obtained. The Eye health seeking behavior of the respondents was defined on the basis of critical markers such as Source for Eye care services, Eye care services sought, compliance to recommended treatment, and reasons for non-compliance. Data obtained were captured with Stata version BE 17, and presented in tables using descriptive statistics.

Results: Out of the 3,780 participants of the study, 2,335 (61.77%) sought care through Community Outreach programs; 901(23.84%) Private Eye Clinics; 522(13.81%) Government Health facilities; 22(0.58%) Traditional methods: Reasons they sought care included Getting Eye glasses/Refractive Services 2,587(68.44%), Routine eye Check 821 (21.72%), Surgery 80(2.12%), Disease/injury 107 (2.83%), and Unknown reasons 185 (4.89%). Treatments recommended were New glasses 1,908 (50.48%), Eye drops 784 (20.74%), Contact lenses 29 (0.77%), Referral 62 (1.64%), and Disease/injury 107 (2.83%). A total of 3,511 (92.88%) respondents showed non-compliance to the recommended treatments, while 269 (7.12%) showed compliance. Reasons for non-compliance included; Unable to afford treatment 3,349 (88.60%), Long waiting time 180 (4.76%), No reason for it 165(4.37), Afraid to get treatment 39(1.03%), No trust in the services 25(0.66%), medically unfit for treatment 11(0.29), and Unable to access the referral site 11(0.29%).

Conclusion: There was a very poor eye health seeking behavior of adults in Imo State, which was generally occasioned by poverty, poor eye health awareness, and lack of social and structural support in the healthcare system. Efforts to strengthen the eye health system in the state are encouraged for the attainment of universal eye health.

 Keywords: Eye Health Services; Health Seeking Behavior; Adults; Imo State

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Citation

Citation: Osuji Samuel Chibueze., et al. “Eye Health Seeking Behaviour Among Adults in Imo State”.Acta Scientific Medical Sciences 7.7 (2023): 97-102.

Copyright

Copyright: © 2023 Osuji Samuel Chibueze., et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.