Factors Associated With Health Outcomes In Diarrhoeal Diseases Among Children Aged 2-59 Monthsadmitted To Coast General Hospital, Mombasa County

Purpose: Diarrhoea is among the leading causes of death among infants who are under five years despite it being preventable and treatable. However, nearly half a million children still die every year as a result of the disease. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional design hospital design was implemented in the study. This study was conducted in Coast General Hospital which is located in Mvita sub-County, Mombasa. A systematic sampling technique was used in the selection of patients who were admitted at the ward and Fischer's formula (1991) was used in the calculation of the sample size. The collection of data was achieved through the use of a structured interview schedule. The bivariate relationship that were associated with the health outcomes and other factors were assessed through the Spearman's rank-order correlation. All variables that were found to be associated with the occurrence with health outcome at the bivariate level were considered together using binary logistic regression. The level of statistical significance was set at p<0.05 and all tests were two-sided. Results: The findings revealed that age, weight, low respiratory rate, capillary refill and children who required oxygen as the child related factors associated with health outcomes of diarrhoea. Marital status of the caregiver was the caregiver related outcome that was associated with health outcomes of diarrhoea and no health facility related factors were found to be significant. Conclusion: Caregivers play a critical role in ensuring adequate healthcare of the children as such more efforts should be directed towards ensuring that they are knowledgeable diarrhoea management