Gaps in the knowledge and skills of Portuguese mothers associated with newborn health care

Abstract

Objectives: assess mothers’ parenting knowledge and skills associated with the parental competence health promotion and monitoring for newborns and infants aged up to six months and determine the key characteristics of mothers who are better prepared for parenting. Method: cross-sectional study conducted in three health centers belonging to a Local Health Unit in the Northern Region of Portugal. Data was collected using clinical interviews conducted with pregnant women or mothers with a child aged up to six months. The tool used contained 21 child health promotion and monitoring indicators associated with different assessment moments: pregnancy, 1st/2nd week, 1st/2nd month, 3rd/4th month, and 5th/6th month. Results: we assessed the knowledge and skills of 629 women. Learning needs were identified for each of the indicators. The mothers who were better prepared for parenting tended to have a higher level of schooling, resided with the child’s father, had other children, had planned pregnancy, and intended to breastfeed. Conclusions: the results showed that knowledge and skills were lacking for each of the periods assessed by this study. First-time single mothers whose pregnancy was unplanned and who did not prepare themselves for parenthood may be considered a vulnerable group.

Determining the Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Mothers Regarding Neonatal Care at Department of Pediatrics Fatima Hospital, Baqai Medical University Karachi

“…Our results revealed that majority of the mothers lacked adequate knowledge and practices about neonatal care and were interested to overcome the challenges if they were informed properly. Other studies on this subject also observed the similar results (10). These studies further emphasized how learning newborn care and parenting skills can change mothers and child's behavior.…”

Processo e resultado do cuidado pré-natal segundo os modelos de atenção primária: estudo de coorte

“…In this context, the differential role of nurses has been emphasized, since it has acted from raising awareness about the importance of follow-up in this period, understanding the meaning of this moment in the pregnant woman's life ( 20 ) . A recent study carried out in Portugal corroborates it since more than half of the mothers who were considered to have a higher level of knowledge reported being the primary source of information during prenatal care ( 21 ) .…”

Mothers’ Understanding of Brain Development in Early Childhood: A Qualitative Study in Brazil

“…A wide range of different reasons have been found to account for parents’ knowledge deficit, concerning child care and development. Some studies have already identified a range of maternal factors associated with fragile maternal care for children, including low interest, lack of preparation, little information, unplanned pregnancy, low education, low age of mothers (Cardoso & Marín, 2018; Gil et al, 2020; WHO, 2020), and maternal history (Nuttall et al, 2015).…”

“…Participants, both primiparous and multiparous, demonstrated gaps in their knowledge during the interviews about children’s brain development, permeated by doubts regarding what is appropriate for each age, brain functions, and the children’s learning, as well as the use of the electronic media as a source of stimuli. These knowledge gaps indicate the need for programs to promote and monitor child health, from preconception care through early childhood, to enable children to reach their full potential (Cardoso & Marín, 2018; Grantham-McGregor et al, 2020; Prime et al, 2020). It is increasingly essential for adults to understand that brain development is shaped in early childhood, and that parenting requires increased knowledge of child development (Bornstein et al, 2020), and support to exercise good parenting practices at home (Jeong et al, 2021).…”