Knowledge, Attitudes And Practices On Early Breastfeeding Among Mothers Delivering At Moi Teaching And Referral Hospital In Uasin-Gishu County, Kenya

ABSTRACT

The prevalence of timely initiation of breastfeeding within 1 hour of birth is 43% globally, 48% in Sub-Saharan Africa, 62% in Kenya, and 69.4% in Rift Valley province. The World Health Organization (WHO) and United Nations International Children‟s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) recommends initiation of breastfeeding within 30-60 minutes of birth, giving colostrum, not giving pre and post-lacteals and also exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) for first six months. Early breastfeeding practices are still suboptimal in most settings because much of the focus of breastfeeding advocacy and research has been on exclusive breastfeeding. Few studies have however investigated early maternal breastfeeding knowledge, attitudes and practices. Hence, there is limited literature in Kenya and Uasin Gishu County. The purpose of this study, therefore, was to determine the knowledge, attitudes, and practices on early breastfeeding among mothers who deliver at Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH), in Uasin-Gishu County. This study adapted the cross-sectional analytical study design with qualitative and quantitative techniques in data collection, analysis, and presentation. A sample size of 283 women who had delivered in the last 72 hours at MTRH participated in the study. The researcher administered a questionnaire to mothers of newborn babies. Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) were also conducted with the nutritionist and the nurse in charge of the labour ward. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 23.0 was used to analyze quantitative data. Maternal attitudes was measured using a five-point Likert scale. Mean scores were calculated for maternal knowledge and attitude. The association between categorical data such as the early breastfeeding knowledge, attitudes, and practices was determined using the odds ratio. Pearson‟s correlation was used to test the association between knowledge scores and attitude scores. Statistical significance was set at p