Practices on immediate care of newborn in the communities of Kailali district

Immediate proper care of newborn is vitally important for survival, growth and development of a baby. Despite several studies conducted in Nepal about maternal and child health care practices, little is known about factors that determine behaviors related to immediate care of newborn. Identification of behavioral determinants for immediate care of newborn in Kailali district was objective of the study. This formative research was conducted in 6 purposely selected Village Development Committees (VDCs) of Kailali. Altogether 17 Focused Group Discussions (FGDs) were conducted with 106 parents. To triangulate the findings, 58 in-depth interviews were conducted with various individuals. Most people are unaware of importance of immediate care of newborn and many unsafe behavior do exist such as common use of untrained attendants, unsafe cord care, immediate bathing of baby. Most of the existing practices are based on deep-seated traditional beliefs. Some used Clean Home Delivery Kit (CHDK) and a few had used knife to cut the cord. All had tied stump with thread and applied mustard oil to prevent infection. The use of CHDK was high in the Tharu group with surprisingly low among Brahmin/Chetri. Yet! This research showed willingness on the part of the community to learn and change harmful practices. Almost all had similar opinion that survival of a baby is with in their control. As child is the center of love of all and targeting a child many behaviors and practices could be changed. The next step would be to prioritize the behaviors that need to be targeted for change and spread key messages for behavior change.