Operational definitions

Health-seeking behavior was defined as diarrheal management practices by mothers/caregivers of under-five children with acute diarrhea for the treatment and recovery of the child from acute diarrhea within 2 weeks prior to data collection. Acute diarrhea was identified using World Health Organization (WHO) signs and symptoms for diarrhea by questioning the mothers/caregivers first about signs and symptoms of diarrhea such as consistency of bowel movements, fever, vomiting, blood in stool, mucus in stool, watery stool, and the frequency of abnormal stool 2 weeks prior to data enumeration. We defined acute diarrhea following the WHO protocol [21] as the passage of three or more abnormally loose watery or liquid stools over a 24 h period. However, the WHO protocol did not specify the recall period. We used the 2 week recall period as specified in World Gastroenterology Organization global guidelines for acute diarrhea survey [22]. We therefore define acute diarrhea as the passage of three or more abnormally loose watery or liquid stools over a 24 h period within 2 weeks prior to the data collection.