Skin-to-Skin Care Practice and Its Associated Factors Among Postpartum Mothers in Gurage Zone, Southern Ethiopia: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Background Skin-to-skin care is placing an unclothed or diaper-only newborn baby on the mother’s bare chest, covered with a warm blanket. The World Health Organization recommends immediate, uninterrupted, and continuous mother–newborn skin-to-skin care practice almost immediately after birth. Despite this recommendation, separation of the newborn from the mother is common in many public health institutions. There was a limited study that examined the prevalence of skin-to-skin care practice and associated factors in Ethiopia. Therefore, the main aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of skin-to-skin care practice and its associated factors among postpartum mothers in Gurage Zone public health centers, Southern Ethiopia, 2020. Methods An institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted in twenty-two public health centers of Gurage Zone from January 1st up to 30th, 2020. A total of 382 postpartum mothers were selected using a systematic sampling technique. Data were collected using structured and pre-tested interviewer-administered questionnaires. Data were entered into EpiData version 3.1.0 and exported to SPSS version 23 for analysis. Both bivariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to identify significant factors associated with skin-to-skin care practice. Statistical significance was declared at a P-value of <0.05 with a 95% confidence level. Results About 35.3% (95% CI; 31.3%–40.4%) of new-borns were received skin-to-skin care practice. Being urban residence [AOR=2.23, (95% CI; 1.17–4.23)], normal newborn birth weight (≥2500gm) [AOR=3.1, (95% CI; 2.15–3.89)], early initiation of breastfeeding [AOR=2.93, (95% CI; 1.29–6.64)], colostrum feeding [AOR=4.19, (95% CI; 2.01–8.73)], and having mothers good knowledge on skin-to-skin care practice [AOR=8.51, (95% CI; 4.32–16.75)] were some of factors associated with mother to newborn skin-to-skin care practice. Conclusion The proportion of mother newborn skin-to-skin care practice was low in the study area. Mothers resided in the urban areas, normal newborn birth weight, early initiation of breastfeeding, colostrum feeding, and having good knowledge of the mothers about skin-to-skin care were factors associated with skin-to-skin care practice. Therefore, health care workers should counsel mothers on optimal breastfeeding practice and enhance maternal awareness regarding the merits of skin-to-skin care practice before discharge from the health facilities are recommended.

Mother and newborn skin-to-skin contact in sub-Saharan Africa: prevalence and predictors

“…Hence, they become highly non-compliant to health promotive newborn practices. Consistent with previous studies,13 26 our findings suggest that women who lived in rural residence reported lower odds of practicing skin-to-skin contact with their newborns. This association may largely be influenced by the preponderance of health facilities and services in urban areas 26.…”

“…Consistent with previous studies,13 26 our findings suggest that women who lived in rural residence reported lower odds of practicing skin-to-skin contact with their newborns. This association may largely be influenced by the preponderance of health facilities and services in urban areas 26. This study also revealed that the likelihood of practicing skin-to-skin contact was lower among women who delivered by caesarean section.…”

“…The explanatory variables considered in this study were selected based on their parsimony and significant associations with mother and newborn skin-to-skin contact from literature,13 24–26 as well as their availability in the DHS dataset. In all, 18 explanatory variables were included.…”

Practicing Level and Determinants of Safe Cord Care and Skin-To-Skin Contact Among Post-partum Women in Public Hospitals of Eastern Ethiopia

“…Placing an unclothed or diaper only newborn baby on the mother's bare chest or abdomen soon after birth and keeping them together continuously for at least 1 h regardless of the mode of delivery, place of delivery, and feeding methods ( 16 , 26 ). In this study, skin-to-skin care practice was measured dichotomously as “Yes” coded as 1 and “No” coded as 0 ( 14 ).…”

“…Even though skin-to-skin contact between neonates and their mothers has numerous benefits for improving the baby's survival, it is being poorly practiced, particularly in resource-limited settings ( 14 ). According to studies, Ethiopia has a low SSC practice that ranges from 28.1 to 35.3% in different parts of the country ( 15 , 16 ). Several studies reported that factors such as maternal education, number of ANC visits, the residence of the family, newborn birth weight, time of breastfeeding initiation after delivery, optimum breastfeeding content-wise, maternal knowledge status toward skin-to-skin contacts, maternal and infant benefits, preterm, Apgar score, route of delivery, the health status of the newborn, place of delivery, and late initiation of ANC follow-up affect the level of skin-to-skin practices ( 14 – 18 ).…”