Knowledge, attitude and practices: assessing maternal and child health care handbook intervention in Vietnam

Abstract

BackgroundMaternal and Child Health (MCH) Handbook, an integrated MCH home-based record, was piloted in four provinces of Vietnam (Dien Bien, Hoa Binh, Thanh Hoa and An Giang). The study is aimed at assessing the changes in pregnant women’s behavior towards the frequencies of their antenatal care service utilizations and their subsequent breastfeeding practices up to six months of age, through the MCH Handbook intervention. This is because the levels of pregnant women’s knowledge, attitude and practices (KAP) towards their antenatal care service utilizations and exclusive breastfeeding practices have been previously neither analyzed nor reported in relation to MCH home-based records in the country.MethodsTo compare pre-intervention baseline in 2011, post-intervention data were collected in 2013. Structured interviews were conducted with randomly selected 810 mothers of children 6-18 months of age in the four provinces. A focus group discussion among mothers in each of four provinces was conducted.ResultsThere was no significant difference in pregnant women’s knowledge about the need for ≥3 antenatal care visits between pre- and post-interventions. Yet, the proportion of pregnant women who made ≥3 antenatal care visits in post-intervention was significantly higher than in pre-intervention. Thus, MCH Handbook is likely to have contributed to practicing ≥3 antenatal care visits, by changing their attitude. The proportion of mothers who know the need for exclusive breastfeeding necessary during the initial six months significantly increased between pre- and post-interventions. The proportion of those practicing exclusive breastfeeding significantly increased between pre- and post-interventions, too. Thus, MCH Handbook is likely to have contributed to the increase in both knowledge about and practices of exclusive breastfeeding.ConclusionThe results of study imply that MCH Handbook contributed to the increase in pregnant women’s practices of ≥3 antenatal care visits and in their knowledge about and practice of exclusive breastfeeding. While there is room for improvement in the level of its data recording, the study confirmed that MCH Handbook plays a catalytic role in ensuring a continuum of maternal, newborn and child care. Note that this study is the first study that attempted to estimate pregnant women’s behavioral changes through MCH Handbook intervention in Vietnam.

Core factors promoting a continuum of care for maternal, newborn, and child health in Japan

“…The combined "Maternal" and "Child" Health Handbook is a useful tool for linking maternal health and child health services and for connecting service users with medical professionals to increase ANC, immunizations, and health-seeking behavior (19)(20)(21)(22)(23)(24)(25). It is also useful for service users to increase their knowledge and awareness of the value of routine health check-ups (21) and to change their attitudes about MNCH (19-21,26-28). However, challenges can still occur for these two actors -service users and service providers -in the system.…”

Visitas domiciliares inovadoras e a saúde materno‑infantil

“…Todos os dados positivos da presente pesquisa também corroboraram os achados da literatura, que indicam o uso de materiais educativos, manuais de orientações e intervenções educacionais nos serviços de saúde como fontes tecnicamente confiáveis para garantir condições de saúde materno-infantil adequadas, melhorar o uso dos métodos contraceptivos, melhorar a prática da amamentação exclusiva e também a qualidade da alimentação complementar das crianças (27)(28)(29)(30)(31)(32)(33)(34)(35)(36) .…”

Pemanfaatan buku Kesehatan Ibu dan Anak pada ibu hamil di puskesmas

“…Penelitian sebelumnya menyebutkan bahwa pada kelompok ibu hamil yang membaca buku KIA efektif meningkatkan pengetahuan tentang ASI Ekslusif (Aiga et al, 2016). Menurut (Takeuchi et al, 2016) buku KIA bermanfaat untuk memberikan pendidikan kesehatan ibu dan anak bagi orang tua, sehingga memungkinkan orang tua mengambil keputusan tentang permasalahan kesehatan ibu dan anak.…”

“…Hasil penelitian di Bangladesh ibu yang memiliki buku KIA menyatakan bahwa buku KIA dapat meningkatkan praktik yang lebih baik tentang KIA, serta lebih memanfaatkan layanan KIA dibanding dengan kelompok kontrol yang hanya memiliki Kartu Catatan Kesehatan secara umum (Bhuiyan, 2009). Penelitian sebelumnya menyebutkan bahwa pada kelompok ibu hamil yang membaca buku KIA efektif meningkatkan kunjungan ANC >3 kali (Aiga et al, 2016). Studi lain menyebutkan bahwa pengetahuan tidak selalu mempengaruhi perilaku kesehatan seseorang (Kelly & Barker, 2016), ibu yang memiliki pengetahuan tinggi tentang buku KIA tidak akan menjamin memanfaatkan buku KIA sebagai sumber informasi perawatan selama kehamilan.…”