Maternal awareness of best practices and behaviors regarding
childbearing and childcare significantly impacts children's developmental
outcomes and overall survival. This influence is most critical during the
formative years of childbearing. Knowledge about proper nutrition, health
practices, immunization schedules, and early childhood education plays a
substantial role. Moreover, understanding and recognizing the signs of common
childhood illnesses and conditions are vital aspects of maternal behavior that
contribute to a child's well-being. Providing a safe and stimulating
environment that encourages children's physical, emotional, and intellectual
development is also pivotal. In essence, the role of mothers and maternal
figures is central to fostering healthy, resilient, and capable children who
can thrive in their subsequent life stages. This chapter evaluates knowledge
and practices of key maternal and childcare practices among women of
childbearing age in the Safe Motherhood project, managed by the Ntcheu District
Health Office in the Republic of Malawi. Safe Motherhood Project is a Malawi
Government initiative that includes direct and indirect efforts to reduce
maternal, neonatal, and child deaths, as well as disabilities resulting from
pregnancy and childbirth by ensuring that every woman has access to a full
range of high-quality and affordable sexual and reproductive health services.
The focus is on the cross-sectional study that utilized both quantitative and
qualitative data collection and analysis procedures. Data were also collected
through a review of participant health records. Although the findings showed
that all participants (n=400) had a general knowledge of maternal and child
health care, they did not have comprehensive information, and only a few
mothers were practicing the recommended key child health care practices. Only
42.4% (n=170) knew the appropriate number of visits a woman should make to the
antenatal clinic, very few knew the appropriate time at which to access
antenatal care, and slightly over half (50%, n=220) breastfed their babies
exclusively. Some participants introduced supplementary feeds as early as a
month after birth, and not all women delivered at the health facility. Failure
to actively involve men and elderly women in maternal and child health issues
had a negative impact on women’s ability to fully implement key maternal and
childcare best practices. The findings suggest that it is crucial to actively
involve men and elderly women in addressing maternal and child health issues in
the Malawian context. In Malawi, the responsibility of raising a child does not
solely rest on the mother but also on the entire village community. Elderly
women serve as the guardians for women of childbearing age and hold valuable
traditional knowledge that can greatly benefit young women. Additionally, it is
essential to engage Community Nurse-Midwives in facilitating women’s groups to
provide comprehensive antenatal information to mothers, enabling them to apply
this knowledge in practice.
Author(s) Details
Dennis
Mseu
Nurses and Midwives Council of Malawi, Lilongwe, Malawi.
Sadandaula
Rose Muheriwa-Matemba
Department of Human Development Nursing Science, College of
Nursing, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
Betty
Mkwinda Nyasulu
The Writing Program Department, University College, University of
Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), 1 UTSA Circle, San Antonio, Texas, USA.
Please see the book here:- https://doi.org/10.9734/bpi/mmrnp/v2/1048
