Strategising the Educational Interventional Methods on Infant Feeding Practices: An Exploratory Study among Primary Care Workers in Rural Mysore

Breast feeding an infant is culturally accepted as well as the natural choice for mothers in India, is associated with lots of myths and misconceptions. At the community level, the primary health workers like ANMs, AWWs, ASHA are not only the primary source of information also first level of contact to the health system. With this background the current study was conducted as an attempt to assess their level of knowledge as well as best educational interventions related to infant feeding practices among primary care workers.

A prospective interventional study was conducted among the primary care workers for a period of six months. The workers were then divided into three groups and the educational intervention was given and later reassessed after one month.

Majority of the health workers 93.7% had an experience more than 3 years. All types of educational interventions given to the health care workers effectively improved the knowledge level, which was statistically significant (p < 0.01) demonstrated by using the Kruskal Walli's test.

The lecture cum demonstration method of intervention was found not only effective but also feasible way of improving the knowledge when compared to only leaflet and only lecture groups.