Looking within the household: gender roles and responses to malaria in Ghana

Studies of factors affecting treatment-seeking behaviour for malaria have rarely considered the influence of gender roles and relations within the household. This study supported district-level government workers in the Volta Region of Ghana in conducting a situational analysis of gender inequities...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene 2006-04, Vol.100 (4), p.321-326
Main Authors: Tolhurst, Rachel, Nyonator, Frank K.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Attitude
Biological and medical sciences
Child
Equity
Family Characteristics
Female
Gender
Gender Identity
Ghana
Health Services Accessibility - standards
Human protozoal diseases
Humans
Infectious diseases
Interpersonal Relations
Malaria
Malaria - therapy
Male
Medical sciences
Parasitic diseases
Patient Acceptance of Health Care - psychology
Protozoal diseases
Treatment-seeking behaviour
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Summary:Studies of factors affecting treatment-seeking behaviour for malaria have rarely considered the influence of gender roles and relations within the household. This study supported district-level government workers in the Volta Region of Ghana in conducting a situational analysis of gender inequities in relation to the malaria burden and access to healthcare services for malaria in one community in their district. Qualitative and participatory methods, such as focus group discussions, in-depth individual interviews and ranking exercises, were used. The study found that women who lacked either short- or long-term economic support from male relatives, or disagreed with their husbands or family elders about appropriate treatment-seeking, faced difficulties in accessing health care for children with malaria. This illustrates the significant influence of women's access to resources and decision-making power on treatment-seeking behaviour for children with febrile illnesses, and the importance of approaching malaria management in the community or household from a gender perspective.
ISSN:0035-9203
1878-3503
DOI:10.1016/j.trstmh.2005.05.004