1Principal, Subharti Nursing College, Swami Vivekanand Subharti University, Meerut
2Lecturer, Subharti Nursing College, Swami Vivekanand Subharti University, Meerut
3Assistant Lecturer, Subharti Nursing College, Swami Vivekanand Subharti University, Meerut
Online published on 1 October, 2015.
Diarrheal disease is a major cause of morbidity and mortality among under-fives especially in rural and peri-urban communities in developing countries. Mothers are the key caregivers for children under five years of age. Inappropriate management at home by mothers can lead to deterioration of the condition, sometimes death. Knowledge and practices of mothers or other care-takers of children are important determinants of the occurrence or outcome of diarrheal diseases. Therefore the study was undertaken to determine the knowledge and practices of mothers.
1) To determine the knowledge and practices regarding home based management of diarrheal diseases among the mother of under five children in peri-urban area. 2) To determine the association of knowledge and practice scores with selected demographic variables.
It was a descriptive study with cross sectional design. The study population included mothers of under five children living in peri-urban areas of Meerut District. A total of 100 mothers were selected using purposive sampling technique. The data was collected by using structured interview schedule consisting of questionnaire to determine both knowledge and practices of mothers regarding home based management of diarrhea. The data analysis was done using the descriptive and inferential analysis.
Overall knowledge (=9.38) and practices (mean=8.98) of the mothers were inadequate, while they had better knowledge regarding dehydration. The practices of the mothers were found to be slightly less appropriate than the knowledge, however they were positively correlated. Number of diarrheal episodes and source of information were found to be associated with the knowledge and practices of the mothers.
The study found that the mothers had inadequate knowledge and inappropriate practices regarding the home based management of diarrhea. Age of mothers and source of information regarding diarrhea management can affect the knowledge of the mothers while family size, no. of previous diarrheal episodes and source of information regarding diarrhea management can affect practices of mothers. The study recommends appropriate strategies to provide knowledge and skills to manage diarrhoea at home.
Home based management, Mothers of under five
