The Role of Mothers in Household Health-Seeking Behavior and Decision-Making in Childhood Febrile Illness in Okurikang/Ikot Effiong Otop Community, Cross River State, Nigeria

The authors examine mothers and decision making during childhood febrile illness in rural Nigeria in this article. Employing a cross-sectional descriptive community survey, we elicited information from four categories of caregivers with the help of structured questionnaires. Apart from sociostructural economic factors, the authors reveal how interlocking objectives and values as expressed in extended family institutions functioned to influence both behavior and decision making of mothers. We suggest expanding the target of health education in the rural areas to include the family as an extended structure.