Traditional practices performed by nurses during postpartum period

Abstract

Objective: In order to provide a quality health service, the awareness of traditional practices of healthcare providers, especially nurses, is as important as the understanding of the illnesses and health perception of those receiving care and their approaches to contemporary and traditional practices, because nurses' own cultural values and beliefs can affect their decisions and attitudes toward the patients. .
 Methods: This descriptive study was performed with female nurses with children and working in a university hospital. The sample was not determined by using any special method of selection. The study was completed with the participation of 316 nurses who volunteered to participate in the study. The participation rate was 82%. Data were collected from October 2018 to April 2019 by using a survey form developed by the researchers based on the literature 
 Results: Of the nurses, 91.5% thought traditional practices were important but 8.5% thought that such practices were unimportant to prevent/resolve health-related problems. The most common first three practices that the nurses implemented to prevent puerperal fever included fortieth-day baths (44.3%), praying (37.3%), and not staying home alone (28.2%). Conclusion: It is important for nurses to be aware of their viewpoints against traditional practices as to understanding transcultural care and providing service in this direction