Maternal aspects of home based newborn care (HBNC) practices in rural areas of Uttarakhand, India: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Background and objectivesAround 2.6 million infants die within the first one month of life every year and India alone accounts for about one-fifth of global live births and one-fourth of neonatal deaths. Uttarakhand being a rural predominant state of India has neonatal mortality rate of 31 per 1000 live births in 2018 that is much higher than the targeted 12 deaths per 1000 live births by 2030 as per Sustainable Developmental Goal-3. The present study is being undertaken to examine Home Based Newborn Care practices of mothers in rural areas of Uttarakhand, India. MethodsA community based cross-sectional study was conducted on 205 postnatal mothers who were within 42 days of delivery in Doiwala, Uttarakhand using total enumeration technique. Data were collected using reliable, structured and pretested tools comprising various aspects of home based newborn care practices. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 21. ResultsDelivery of most of the mothers (94.15%) took place in health centers though they never consulted obstetricians during pregnancy. While the remaining 5.85% of mothers gave birth at home with the help of local Dais and family members. Most of the babies (95.12%) were born full-term and about half of them (47.40%) were immunized with BCG, OPV and HEP-B vaccines. About 78.05% of mothers initiated breast feeding within the first hour of delivery and 88.29% of the mothers reported exclusive breastfeeding. However, the remaining 11.71% of mothers provided water, gripe water or ghutti to their babies as pre-lacteal feeds. 72.68% of mothers delayed the first bath of their baby for at least 48 h post-delivery and Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) was practiced by 74.63% of mothers. Most of the participants (93.66%) were aware of keeping umbilical cords clean and dry, however, the remaining 6.34% of the mothers still practiced traditional methods of applying turmeric powder and ghee to the cord. ConclusionMost of the mothers were aware of hygiene maintenance and thermal protection for babies during the post-natal period. Some of the major challenges experienced by the mothers include early bathing of newborns, delayed initiation of breast feeding, cord care, avoidance of KMC, providing pre-lacteal feeds to newborns, as well as others.