Care-Seeking Behavior and Perceptions of Service Receivers Regarding IMCI Services

Childhood morbidity and mortality remain major public health concerns worldwide, particularly in low-and middle-income countries where access to quality health services is often limited.Globally, millions of children under five years of age die each year, with the majority of deaths attributed to preventable and treatable conditions such as pneumonia, diarrhea, malaria, malnutrition, and neonatal complications.Recognizing this burden, the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF jointly developed the Integrated Management of Childhood Illness (IMCI) strategy in the mid-1990s as a comprehensive approach to improve child health through standardized case management, strengthening of health systems, and community participation [1,2].The IMCI strategy emphasizes early recognition of danger signs, appropriate classification of illness,