To determine the health care needs and practices of the area covered by the Koje-Do Community Health and Development Project, a questionnaire survey was conducted by trained public health nurses to 971 randomly selected members of 160 families from the 8 villages of the area. The self-reported illness prevalence rate, the self-reported diagnosis of illness, treatment, sources of treatment and reasons for failure to obtain treatment were discussed by the epidemiological, socioeconomical factors such as age, sex, occupation, education and family size. Some significant findings are: 1. The parents of girls less than 6 years old reported only about half of the rate illness (32%) that the parents of boys the same age reported (56%). About twice as many women (7.4%) reported vague symptoms as men (3.2%). 2. The age group 0-5 years old had an illness prevalence of 44%, those 6-34 years old reported 28% ill and those 35 years old and older reported 49% ill during the preceeding months. The most striking effect of age upon the diagnosis reported in the high rate of respiratory and ENT illnesses in 0-5year old age group. Age significantly reduced the rates of treatment for those incapacitate by their illnesses in the 6-10 and 50-plus year old age groups. 3. If the head of household was literate the family members are more likely to receive treatment, and less likely to use herb doctors. 4. Occupation and age adjusted family size did not affect significantly the illness prevalence, diagnosis of the illness and treatment. 5. Thirty-six percent (36%) of the subjects reported an illness during the preceeding month and 12% of them were incapacitated by the illness. 6. Fifty-eight percent (58%) of those ill and 73% incapacitated by illness received treatment. 7. Fourty-four percent (44%) of the treatment was obtained from local drug outlets, 21% from the mainland, 15% from local physician and 10% from herb doctors. 8. Fourty-eight percent (48%) of those failing to receive treatment did so because the illness was not serious enough, 46% because treatment was too expensive, 3% because treatment was not effective, 1% because treatment was not easily available and 2% for other reason.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Age Factors ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Educational Status ; Family Characteristics ; Female ; Health Surveys* ; Human ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Korea ; Male ; Middle Age ; Mobile Health Units ; Morbidity* ; Occupations ; Rural Health ; Sampling Studies ; Sex Factors ; Socioeconomic Factors