A Situational Analysis of Health-seeking Behavior for Malaria and Diabetes Mellitus in Tanzania
Open Access
- Author:
- Nordberg, Cara Marie
- Area of Honors:
- Biobehavioral Health
- Degree:
- Bachelor of Science
- Document Type:
- Thesis
- Thesis Supervisors:
- Melina Tanya Czymoniewicz Klippel, Thesis Supervisor
Dr. Lori Anne Francis, Thesis Honors Advisor - Keywords:
- malaria
diabetes
health-seeking behavior
Tanzania
epidemiological transition - Abstract:
- The world is experiencing an epidemiological transition, in which the majority of disease and death is shifting from communicable (e.g. malaria) to non-communicable (e.g. diabetes mellitus) sources. While non-communicable diseases already account for the majority of disease burden in high-income countries, this epidemiological transition is still in its early stages in low-income countries. As a result, low-income countries continue to be burdened with high prevalence of certain communicable diseases; at the same time, the prevalence of non-communicable diseases is rising. Tanzania is one such low-income country that is experiencing a “double burden” of communicable and non-communicable diseases. As the epidemiological transition occurs in Tanzania, it is important for health professionals, health policy planners, and public health actors to understand the population’s health-seeking behaviors for both communicable and non-communicable diseases. Doing so could help these professionals, planners, and actors to increase the capacity of the health care system to care for this double burden of disease, as well as support public health actors to implement successful prevention and treatment programs. This thesis first discusses the current health care system in Tanzania. It then examines health-seeking behavior for malaria, a communicable disease that has long been a major burden of disease, and diabetes mellitus, a non-communicable disease that is just starting to be a public health problem in Tanzania. The thesis concludes by analyzing prominent themes throughout the literature review and discussing recommendations for reducing the burdens of malaria and diabetes in Tanzania.