Using data on infants and children from the 1993 National Demographic Survey
of the Philippines, this report investigates the conditions under which young children
remain healthy or become ill with acute respiratory infection (ARI) or diarrhea
and either receive or do not receive treatment. It focuses on three types of
outcome: the current morbidity status for ARI and diarrheal disease of children
under age 5, the type of health-care services used (if any) by parents of an ill child,
and the mother's knowledge about and use of oral rehydration therapy (ORT). The
objective is to identify the major social and economic determinants of these outcomes
with a view toward improving health-care programs and ultimately
children's survival prospects. The results are presented under the thematic headings
of social and economic development, "culture," family and gender relations,
parental underinvestment in children, and situational factors. The report concludes
with a discussion of the policy implications implicit in the study's findings.