EXPLORING CAREGIVERS’ PERCEPTIONS OF HEALTH CHALLENGES AMONG INTERNALLY DISPLACED CHILDREN IN BANDITRY-AFFECTED COMMUNITIES OF SOKOTO STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

Background:
Children displaced by banditry face heightened health risks driven by economic instability, inadequate healthcare access, and unsafe living conditions. Caregivers play a central role in shaping child health outcomes; however, limited research has explored how they perceive and interpret health challenges within displacement settings. This study examined caregivers’ perspectives on the health challenges affecting internally displaced children in Sokoto State, Nigeria.

Methods:
A qualitative descriptive study informed by phenomenological principles was conducted across five internally displaced persons (IDP) camps in Sokoto State, Nigeria. Purposive sampling was used to recruit caregivers of internally displaced children. In-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted until information redundancy was achieved (n = 11). Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, translated where necessary, and analysed inductively using Braun and Clarke’s reflexive thematic analysis approach. Credibility and rigor were enhanced through reflexive journaling, peer debriefing, consensus-based coding, and member checking. Ethical approval was obtained from the Sokoto State Ministry of Health Research Ethics Committee.

Results:
Four interconnected themes were identified: (1) economic hardship shaping food insecurity and child vulnerability; (2) barriers to healthcare access influenced by financial constraints and perceived inequities; (3) unsafe living conditions contributing to recurrent illness; and (4) reliance on community and external support as adaptive coping mechanisms. Across themes, caregiving emerged as a continuous negotiation with structural instability, reflecting adaptive resilience under constrained conditions.

Conclusion:
Child health challenges in displacement are multidimensional and embedded within broader socio-economic and environmental stressors. Interventions should be grounded in caregivers’ lived experiences and focus on strengthening nutrition support, environmental conditions, accessible community-based healthcare, and caregiver capacity to enhance sustainable child health outcomes in displacement settings.