Signs of Illness, Treatment, and Support for Young Children in Guinea: A Prospective Community Study (English)

Document Type

Qualitative Research Studies

Publication Topic(s)

Child Health

Country(s)

Guinea

Language

English

Author(s)

Andrew J. Gordon and P. Stanley Yoder and Mamdou Camara

Publication Date

September 2004

Publication ID

QRS9

Abstract:

This prospective study of childhood illness was undertaken to examine how childhood illnesses are recognized and treated by Maninka-speaking mothers and others in central Guinea. By making daily visits to households with more than 150 children five years old and younger over a period of two months, and talking with mothers and others about their children, field workers were able to follow children as their health status changed, noting what was done by whom to improve the child's health. The study found that mothers with strong social relations to their husband's family responded more quickly to illness in their children.