The Evaluation of the Usage of Health Care Facilities by Rural Dwellers in Bauchi State, Nigeria

Aims: This study is aimed at evaluating the level of utilization of Health Care services.

Study Design: This study engaged a sectional design.

Place and Duration of Study: Bauchi State as one of the States in northern Nigeria, is with its capital in Bauchi. The State occupies an area of land totaling 49,119 km2 (18,965 sq2) representing about 5.3% of Nigeria’s total land mass. Bauchi is located between latitudes 9° 3' and 12° 3' north and longitudes 8° 50' and 11° east.

Methodology: A total of 1344 respondents were sampled for the study. A well-structured questionnaire as well as focus group discussion with community leaders, religious leaders, and health care workers was used to elicit data for the study. The reliability index of the instrument as determined using Cronbach’s alpha test of internal consistency stood at 0.89. The data from the study were presented using descriptive statistics; mean and percentages were used to answer the research questions, via SPSS version 25.

Results: The utilization of the health care facilities by the respondents was very high. The results indicated that 1162 (86.5%) of the respondents visited the health care facilities often. The result also showed that the relationship between education level of the respondents and the utilization of health care facilities (r = 0.576, p < 0.05) is a positive one, which indicates that the higher the level of education of rural dwellers, the more they utilized health facilities. Income had a positive relationship with health care service utilization (r = 0.645; p < 0.05).

Conclusion: The educational level and income of respondents affected their level of utilization of health care facilities. The Government and other stake holders in the State should help improve the education and income of the rural dwellers, as this will in turn help them to understand the importance of seeking health care services, and consequently reduce mortality due to diseases.