This is a qualitative study on traditional health care of mother and child in Rajbanshi community in Nepal. The aim of the study was to explore traditional maternal and child health care and to uncover harmful practices. Methods in this descriptive study employed in-depth interviews and FGDs with traditional birth attendants, traditional healers, female community health volunteers, health workers and mothers. Tools were semi-structured questionnaire and checklists. The study sample included 60 from Morang, Jhapa, and Sunsari districts. Of them, 30 were from traditional healers, traditional birth attendants (TBA), and female community health volunteers (FCHV) and health workers another 30 were mothers included for three FGDs conducted in 2013. Findings show Rajbanshi culture has native care of mother and child health. Guru Gosai, Gosai, Ojha, and Dhami are traditional healers in the community. Guru Gosaiis also essential to conduct birth, marriage and death rituals. The traditional causes of diseases are deities, witchcrafts, evil spirits, a touch of pithiya/chhatka, and poor sanitation. Traditional healers find the cause through a jokhana. They treat patients by chanting a mantra, jharphuk, jadibuti, buti, and ferani. TBAs and health workers conduct home delivery however trend of hospital delivery increased. The study figured out a mark of a stigma where women pithiya or chhatka are suspected as cause of disease and illness in others. Community people perceive them unholy and unfriendly. Thus, pithiya and chhatka women face unfair treatment. They are vulnerable to maternal and child health. On the other, the traditional practice of cutting the umbilical cord by a barber during a delivery and shaving off newborn's head after a delivery by the barber are harmful practices.
This is a cross-sectional study on postpartum depression (PPD) among Rajbanshi mothers in Nepal. The objective of the study was to find out the prevalence rate of PPD and association between PPD in mothers with smoking/drinking habits of the husbands and perceived stress among Rajbanshi community. Quantitative methods employed using semi-structured questionnaires. The sample size was 375 households from Morang, Jhapa and Sunsari districts. Data collected by in-depth interviews with mothers. Researcher filled the semi-structured questionnaires asked on workload, sleep, perceived stress and treatment history using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale during interviews. In the findings, PPD and maternal stress associate with husband's smoking/drinking habits. Prevalence of PPD was 12.27% in sampled Rajbanshi mothers (EPDS cutoff≥13). PPD in mothers find associated with maternal stress (P= <.0001) and smoking habit of the husband (P=<.0001) which are statistically highly significant. Similarly, sleeplessness in mothers associated with smoking (P=<.005) and drinking (P= <.0001) habits of husbands are also statistically highly significant. In conclusion, PPD among Rajbanshi mothers associates with a smoking habit of the husband. Both smoking and drinking habits of husbands were responsible for causing maternal stress and sleeplessness in mothers and these factors associated with PPD. Smoking and drinking habits of husbands find out risk factors for PPD and perceived stress in her wife. To deal successfully with the poor situation of PPD among Rajbanshi mothers need to change smoking/drinking habits of husbands, raise awareness on health as well as the socio-economic development of the community.
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