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Analysis of Healthcare Seeking Behavior

Description

Healthcare seeking behavior is important to understand when interpreting public health surveillance data, planning for healthcare utilization, or attempting to estimate or model consequences of an adverse event, such as widespread water contamination. Although there is evidence that factors such as perceived susceptibility and benefits affect healthcare seeking behavior, it is difficult to develop accurate assumptions due to a lack of published research on this topic. Current conceptual behavior models, such as the health belief model, are not easily translated into quantifiable terms.

Objective

This paper describes analyses of health seeking behaviors from two surveillance datastreams: Poison Control Center (PCC) calls and Emergency Department (ED) visit records. These analyses were conducted in order to quantify behaviors following the development of symptoms after water contamination exposure and to understand the motivation, decision-making and timing behind healthcare seeking behaviors.

Submitted by teresa.hamby@d… on