Demand for Consumer Health Information and Sustainable Health in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya
1Judy Njeri Karani, 2James Onyango, 3Hillary Ndambiri
1,2,3Department of Economics, Moi University
https://doi.org/10.47191/jefms/v8-i2-25ABSTRACT:
Sustainable health is one of the key factors of production in an economy. Vibrant global endeavour towards attainment of sustainable health as a means of achieving greater heights in economic growth and development emphasize the importance of consumer health information. However, the influence of the demand for consumer health information on sustainable health remains unclear. The primary objective of this study was to analyze the effect of demand for consumer health information on sustainable health in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya. The specific objectives were: to evaluate the effect of prices of substitutes in consumer health information, the prices of complements of consumer health information, income level of households and expected future prices of consumer health information and their complements on sustainable health. The study was pegged on human capital theory, the theory of consumer choice and rational choice theory which provided the specification framework. A sample size of 399 households was used based on 304,943 households. The study is explanatory in design. Structured questionnaires were distributed to the head of households using random sampling, to collect data. The findings of the study indicated that prices of substitutes in consumer health information, income level of households and expected future prices of substitutes in consumer health information and their complements had a positive and significant effect on sustainable health, while complements of consumer health information were found to have a positive but insignificant effect on sustainable health. The study recommends that, policies should aim at regulating the prices of substitutes in consumer health information, reduce income inequality and increasing disposable income of lower-income households, stabilize prices by ensuring that prices remain predictable and affordable for sustainable health practices, and facilitate correct and prompt health decisions. The effects of Prices of complements of consumer health information although less significant, should be looked more in to.
KEYWORDS:
demand for consumer health information, sustainable health, utility, labour productivity, consumer choice, consumer behaviour, consumption of consumer health information
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