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Improving Health Seeking Behaviour

Poor health seeking behaviour is a significant contributor to mortality and morbidity in our society. Each year, millions of lives are lost to preventable and treatable health conditions because people do not seek mainstream treatment early. A common behavioural pattern is for individuals to start with self-medication, and if the health problem persists help is sort from family member and friends.  Proper medical care is always the last resort and usually at this point the state of ill health is advanced and the prognosis is poor. Even among those who survive, the complications that might rise from these late diagnosis have a significant impact on the individuals and their households.


Health seeking Behaviour is a situation where a person in stable health is actively seeking ways to alter his or her personal habits or environment in order to move toward a higher level of health. Health-seeking is time difference between the onset of an illness and getting in contact with a healthcare professional, type of healthcare provider sought, how compliant patient is with the recommended treatment, reason for choice of healthcare professional and reasons for not seeking help from healthcare professionals. It includes all behaviours associated with establishing and maintaining a healthy physical and mental state (Primary Prevention). Health-seeking behaviours also include behaviours that deal with any digression from the healthy state, such as controlling (Secondary Prevention) and reducing impact and progression of an illness (Tertiary prevention).

The Health Seeking Behaviour Programme seeks to improve knowledge and re-orientate individual’s attitude toward health. It is an educational awareness programme that uses a series of health education messages and free medical outreach to demonstrate that there are real health threats first of all and secondly, that adopting proper health seeking behaviours can reduce one’s exposure  to such health threats and risk. Our aim is to encourage utilization of mainstream health service in a timely manner and routine health assessment among people in rural and peri-urban communities. The program is presently ongoing in  Kwara, Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Osun and  Oyo States and our goal is to ensure this programme extends to every rural and peri-urban community in our society.

Each year, millions of lives are lost to preventable and treatable health conditions because persons suffering from them did not seek mainstream treatment early. People differ in their willingness to seek medical care early. 

Everyday millions of lives are lost to preventable causes, your donations will help us expand our reach and save more lives.