Delay in seeking treatment is influenced by both patient and healthcare facility-related factors. The objective of the study was to determine the prevalence of delay in seeking treatment and reasons for delay among individuals with elevated blood pressure in selected barangays in Zamboanga City. This study utilized a cross-sectional descriptive design which included 453 individuals with elevated blood pressure. Systematic random sampling was utilized to select participants through house to house survey. The researcher also conducted 4 Focus Group Discussion (FGD) to further substantiate the data gathered from survey and purposive sampling was utilized to select respondents for FGD. The prevalence of delay among participants with elevated blood pressure was 255(56.3%) out of 453 participants. There were 18(7.1%) participants with elevated blood pressure who sought treatment but was delayed and 237 (92.9%) participants did not seek treatment at all. The main personal reasons of delay among participants with elevated blood pressure were busy at work 77(30.2%), financial constraints 46 (18.0%), fear of what would be found out 38 (14.9%), I do not feel anything 26 (10.2%) and health is not a priority 25 (9.8%). The common healthcare facility-related factors for delay among participants with elevated blood pressure were perceived long waiting time before being seen by a doctor 13(5.1%) and physician is not around 3(1.2%). In 4 FGDs, results revealed that majority of the participants stated that financial constraints was the main reason of delay why participants choose to not to seek treatment at a healthcare facility. Busy at work, fear to know their illness, and perceived seriousness of the symptoms played also a role in the decision to seek treatment among participants with elevated blood pressure. The behavior of healthcare workers, membership fee, presence of doctor in a healthcare facility, perceived long waiting time and lack of services and facilities were perceived reasons for non-seeking treatment among the participants. Thus, the study concludes that more than half of the participants with elevated blood pressure had delay in seeking treatment in selected barangays in Zamboanga City. The reasons could be associated to poverty and lack of awareness on the severity of symptoms and complications of hypertension as well as the health services offered by the government. It is recommended to increase public awareness on the importance of early diagnosis and treatment to update individuals in the community. It is also recommended that strategies should be developed to increase awareness on the health programs and updates on services being rendered by the public health institutions.

Keyword: Delay in seeking treatment and reasons for delay Individuals with elevated blood pressure