Healthcare seeking behavior among acute gastrointestinal illness cases in community people of Gansu province

Objective To study the prevalence of acute gastrointestinal illness (AGI) and healthcare-seeking behavior of the AGI sufferers among community people in Gansu province for developing measures for prevention and control of the disease and optimizing healthcare resource allocation.Methods A face-to-face interview was conducted between 2011 and 2013 among 4 229 respondents recruited with cluster random sampling using a standardized questionnaire.Results The adjusted monthly prevalence rate of AGI was 6.6%.Among the AGI sufferers,the proportion of seeking healthcare was 70.7%;no regional difference (71.1% for urban and 70.7% for rural) but a significant gender difference (88.4% for the males and 52.9% for the females,χ²=23.2;P<0.01) in the proportion was observed.Of the AGI sufferers seeking healthcare,94.7% had medication;63.3% took antibiotics;and a majority of them chose second-level hospitals for medical service.Conclusion There are a relevant high AGI prevalence among community people and high proportions of seeking healthcare,taking medicine,and attending second-level hospitals other than community healthcare centers or village clinics among community AGI sufferers in Gansu province.