Assessment of knowledge regarding new-born care among mothers in Kancheepuram district, Tamil Nadu

Abstract

INTRODUCTION Primary health care is an integral component of health care delivery system of our country. It has been defined as "the essential health care made universally accessible to individuals and acceptable to them through their full participation and at a cost the community and country can afford". 1 One of the key elements of primary health care is maternal and child health. It has been emphasized through the concept of primary health care, that mother and child constitute a single unit. This concept has been followed while planning national health programs and policies on maternal and child care. It is pertinent to consider so, as both the groups are vulnerable to several physical, social and emotional issues and the preventive measures to tackle these problems are fairly similar for both the groups. Moreover, it has been established that welfare of women and children is a key determinant of the progress of a nation. With a high focus on these aspects, the Government of India launched Reproductive and Child Health (RCH) ABSTRACT Background: Educating mothers to create awareness about essential obstetric and neonatal care are the key steps in achieving the goals of reproductive and child health programme. In this study, we aimed to assess the level of knowledge regarding essential new born care among the mothers. Methods: This community based cross sectional study was done in Kancheepuram district, using a sample size of 100 mothers arrived based on the expected number of pregnancies in the area. The participants were selected by simple random sampling and data collected regarding the knowledge on newborn care among the mothers, using a structured interview schedule. Results: The study result showed that mean age of mothers was 25 years and mean weight of babies was about 3 kg. Regarding the education status, 67% studied up to 10 th standard and 18% studied up to plus two levels. Majority of them got information on new born care from health workers (44%) and family members (36%). The level of adequate knowledge regarding newborn care was present only in 15%, feeding practices in 39%, various components of immunization in 8%, growth and development in 42% and about newborn illness in 33% of the mothers. The knowledge regarding new born care was found to have a significant association with the educational status of the mothers. Conclusions: This study outcome shows the need for a better revamped awareness and education program coupled with effective health care delivery system to improve the level of knowledge among mothers on new born care, in achieving better health indicators as far as RCH services are concerned.