Abstract
Background. This study was designed to understand the patterns and determinants of three essential newborn care practices: safe cord care, optimal thermal care, and neonatal feeding practices. Methods. A community-based cross-sectional study was carried out on a sample of 404 lactating mothers who have delivered a live baby at home within the past one year prior to the study. Results. Overall, the prevalence of essential newborn practices on safe cord care and optimal thermal care was exceptionally low. Of the 404 newborns, only 0.2% (1) had safe cord care, 5.2% (21) optimal thermal care, and 50.2% (203) were considered to have had adequate neonatal feeding. In logistic regression analysis, the main predictors of good neonatal feeding were maternal age, timing of the first antenatal care (ANC), and maternal knowledge of newborn danger signs. Women who could mention at least 4 danger signs of the neonate were 4 times more likely to give good neonatal feeding to their babies (AOR = 4.7, Cl: 2.43–9.28), P<0.001. Conclusion. Evidence from this study strongly suggests that the expected essential newborn care practices are not available to a substantial number of the newborns. Efforts should therefore be made by the Ghana Health Service (GHS) to expand essential newborn care interventions beyond institutional level into the communities.
Highlights
Reduction in under-five mortality rates by two-thirds by the year 2015 is one of the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) [1]
We proposed to test whether three composite newborn care practices were related to sociodemographic factors, use of antenatal services, birth preparedness, mothers’ knowledge of specific newborn danger signs, and presence of skilled birth attendant (SBA) at delivery
The findings show that good neonatal feeding practices were commonly adopted among women aged 25–34 years, women who initiated antenatal care (ANC) early, and those who could mention at least 4 danger signs of the newborn (Table 5)
Summary
Reduction in under-five mortality rates by two-thirds by the year 2015 is one of the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) [1]. In Ghana, over a period of 18 years (i.e., 1990–2008), there has been a reduction in child mortality rates [6]. In the same time period neonatal mortality rate (NMR) has declined by 26.8 percentage points from 41 per 1,000 live births to 30 per 1,000 live births [7]. This study was designed to understand the patterns and determinants of three essential newborn care practices: safe cord care, optimal thermal care, and neonatal feeding practices. Of the 404 newborns, only 0.2% (1) had safe cord care, 5.2% (21) optimal thermal care, and 50.2% (203) were considered to have had adequate neonatal feeding. Efforts should be made by the Ghana Health Service (GHS) to expand essential newborn care interventions beyond institutional level into the communities
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