Demographic Characteristics as Determinants of the Use of Health Care Services: A Case of Nsukka, Southeast Nigeria

Abstract

Studies have associated demographic characteristics as strong determinants of utilization of health care services; however, not much has been done to explore the dynamics of these variables in Nigeria. This empirical study explores the link between demographic factors and the use of health care services. 543 respondents were selected using multi-stage sampling technique. The findings showed that a majority (56.9%) of the respondents were female while (50.3%) were married. Testing the demographic characteristics regarding where people will prefer to go for treatment with multiple regression, it is only sex as a demographic variable that indicates positive association, with 0.08 level of significance. Variables such as age and education did not indicate any strong correlation with health care services utilization in the study area. This result corroborates the reality in many parts of African society where it is the father that dictates the cause of action. That means gender plays an important role in the utilization of health care delivery.